Cursed Eyes
by Illuviar
Summary: Ichigo dies after captain Kuchiki attack during Rukia's arrest. Thanks to a shady deal between Itachi (who happens to be one of Kurosaki's ancestors) and the Shinigami King, Ichigo receives the opportunity to win a second chance. Kurosaki is transported to the Elemental nations, as an Uchiha a elder brother of Sasuke, believing that his task is to help raise and protect him.
1. Chapter 1 v2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto, they belong to their respective owners. ****I make no money from this story.**

**'Bankai!' - thought**

**"Bankai!" - speech**

_**"Bankai!"**_** \- Zanpakuto/demon speech**

**Cursed Eyes**

**Prologue**

**=CE=**

**Karakura town, Japan**

"How slow... even when you fall," those words hurt more than the bite of the blade that cut him down.

Two strikes, delivered by a man moving too fast to see, and Ichigo was falling to the ground. He could feel his Reiatsu, which was leaving him, like a wave of water surging from a broken dam.

Even before he hit the ground, the twin strikes had him incapacitated. In mere moments, Kurosaki's spiritual power was gone.

The vile taste of failure was souring Ichigo's mouth. He failed. His friend, the woman who had given him the power to save his family... He couldn't protect her.

Ichigo drifted in and out of conscious, barely hearing snippets of conversation.

"Let's go, Renji."

"The brat's dead."

"It's my fault he died!" Rukia cried out.

For a moment, Ichigo's mind cleared enough for him to comprehend what the raven haired woman said. He bristled at her words. It wasn't her fault! He was the one laying broken on the ground, defeated. He was the one strong enough!

Kurosaki's eyes briefly fluttered open, just enough for him to see Rukia being pinned to a nearby sign post by that red haired bastard. Ichigo's dying body shook with impotent fury. Ichigo's heart was thundering within his chest, increasing the speed with which he was loosing blood from his gaping wounds.

Guided by instinct, Kurosaki's trembling fingers clawed at the hilt of his shattered sword and grabbed it like a lifeline.

"Release Rukia!" he spat from bloodstained lips.

Ichigo prayed for a tiny shred of power, just enough to help her, even if it cost him his very soul. He glared at her tormentor, and if the eyes could kill, the red haired Shinigami would become a smoking pile of charred meat.

Enraged by the human's continued defiance, Renji slammed Rukia's back in the hard metal post.

Ichigo blinked in confusion. Everything was becoming harder to see. The Shinigami and Rukia forms became dark blurs, their voices transforming to whispers, coming from so far away.

Lub, lub. Lub, lub. Lub – lub. Those were the only words Ichigo could hear as his world was engulfed in darkness. Lub. Pause. Lub. The echo was fainter and more irregular with each repeat. 'Heart-beat.' - supplied his clouded mind. Lub... He waited for eternity for the second beat before succumbing into soft twilight. As his unseeing eyes closed, a single bloody tear, slowly made its way down his face, leaving a crimson trail.

If someone could have seen Ichigo's eyes at that last moment, they would have stared at the single spinning tomoe appearing on the edge of his iris.

**=CE=**

"Hn. That was unpleasant." a calm, almost bored voice deadpanned.

Ichigo found himself in a small, well lit room. It was empty, besides the owner of the voice. Kurosaki stared at the man in front of him.

That was a male with hair the color of charcoal, whose body was hidden under a dark cloak embroidered with pink clouds. On his forehead laid a head protector made of gray metal. On it was etched the stylized symbol of a leaf.

The stranger's face was framed by bangs of his black hair, making the pronounced tear-through under his eyes contrast with his pale skin.

Ichigo could see the look of regret on the man's face. A pair of onyx black eyes were looking softly at the Substitute Soul Reaper.

"I hoped that if we were to meet, it would be at much better circumstances. You are dying, child."

Ichigo's eyes widened in realization. The last thing he heard before blacking out and appearing here, was his heartbeat. The lack of it.

"So that's it. I was useless." muttered Kurosaki.

The cloaked man raised an eyebrow in amusement.

"Hardly. Untrained? That I'll grant you. You were facing a Shinigami Captain and Lieutenant, who had decades, perhaps centuries more experience than you. You did better than most could have hoped to do in such situation. That's hardly useless, Ichigo!" The man's lips stretched in thin smile. "Yet the outcome was predictable. As you are, you stood no chance."

The young, living Shinigami looked at the man. His confused mind trying to comprehend the words. He flinched.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, do you want to protect her? This Rukia of yours?" asked the stranger.

That knocked the teen out of his confusion. His eyes shone with unholy light, the tomoes in them started spinning madly.

"Yes! I will save her!" he declared in a voice ringing with conviction.

A genuine smile appeared on the cloaked man's face, while he evaluated the youngster. Their time was running out, but that wasn't really important under the circumstances. It would be long enough, before Ichigo succumbs to his wounds and truly die, despite the fact that his heart had already stopped.

The stranger examined Ichigo for a moment longer. It felt strange, looking in the eyes of his descendant. One who was born and raised in a different dimension.

The man was feeling nostalgia, while looking at the newly awakened Sharingan in Ichigo's eyes. It was the first time that bloodline had manifested in this world.

If he had anything to say about it, it wouldn't be the last.

"I can give you another chance. Though I'll ask you a boon in return."

Ichigo looked the man in the eyes, while thinking about Rukia. She had saved him from that Hollow. More importantly, she had given him the power to protect his sisters. And that was a debt he could never repay.

At that moment, Kurosaki knew the answer he was going to give. He had to save Rukia. At any price. 'Let's see what it would be.'

"What is the catch?" Ichigo asked with calmness he didn't feel.

"To be on equal footing with those Shinigami, you need much more than raw power. Years, perhaps decades of experience. There is a way you can gain all that. And more."

"Go to the point... Please." muttered Ichigo.

"You should know something. You could very well die trying to fulfill my request. Yet, you are moments from oblivion right now..."

Kurosaki nodded. He knew it. Perhaps, it was a faced of his very being as a Shinigami. He could sense his own death approaching. His body was already dead, with his soul clinging to it with its last few scrap of spiritual power.

It wouldn't last. It couldn't.

Ichigo took a deep breath and spoke:

"I accept. What do you want me to do?"

It wasn't like he had any other choice. Besides just dying. And he refused to go quietly into the long night.

The man bowed at Kurosaki, and when he straightened up, there was a warm smile on his face.

"I need you to take care of my little brother." stated the man.

His eyes glowed, irises changing into intertwined black pinwheels, which were spinning slowly. Ichigo was mesmerized by the sight, never noticing how the space around him blurred, shifting and twisting as if being sucked into a vortex.

"I will send you to a place where you'll gain all the experience you'll need to face the Shinigami and their Seireitei. When you return, you will be ready. "

"What do you mean?" asked Ichigo. There was a sense of premonition of things to come washing over the teen.

"I'm sorry for the fate I'm forcing onto you, Ichigo." the man took a deep breath. "It will destroy you."

Kurosaki was about to protest, but his words died on his lips. He stared at the spinning symbol within the man's eyes. It was mesmerizing.

"Remake you. It's a path of blood and tears, you'll be walking from now on. And for that I am truly sorry, my descendant..." Kurosaki could clearly hear the sadness in the man's voice. "But fear not. You'll have the opportunity to earn your second chance while in the Elemental Nations. In the end, you would be able to meet your precious sisters again. If you survive the coming storms. Tsukuyomi!"

Ichigo found himself in a realm of red mists and shadows. A crimson moon was glowing in the sky.

The man was here as well, smiling at him apologetically.

"I'll give you your birthright Ichigo. The tools you'll need to survive and fulfill our pact. I, Uchiha Itachi, welcome you to the family. "

Ichigo's very being, the essence of his soul, was engulfed by black fire, engraving knowledge into his mind. Kurosaki screamed, as his mind was turned into ashes, scattering onto unseen wind, and then was remade, only for the torture to start again.

In the real world mere moment passed, while Ichigo lived through eighteen years of another boy's life. Those new memories and experiences that were carved into his mind almost shattered him.

He was reborn into a strange new land. Raised by a woman who was so much alike his dead mother, yet different.

Somehow, Ichigo knew it in his heart. That woman... she had his mother's soul if not her memories... Even the same name. Kurosaki Masaki.

She was the one who raised him in this mad world, populated by men and women wielding supernatural powers. She trained him in the arts of those so called Shinobi. Giving him his birthright.

After all, she was one of them. A retired Kunochi.

For the boy that was Kurosaki Ichigo, that hallucination, all eighteen years of it, made some of the best years of his life. While he lived through that time, despite his life in Karakura being like a distant, half-forgotten dream, he was content. Happy. It was as if Ichigo knew that he was receiving a rare gift that must be cherished.

He should have known. All good things came to an end.

Masaki took ill and in scant short weeks later, died by some unknown disease. Yet, when she closed her eyes for that last time, she had a smile on her face.

Ichigo screamed, as a nightmare of pain and loss repeated.

Itachi, sad smile never leaving his face, whispered:

"Rise, Uchiha Ichigo. Time to go home."

Itachi's eyes became a black void with a single crimson point in the center. The world stayed still for a moment, and then Ichigo was engulfed by a vortex, to be sent far, far away.

Itachi fell to his knees gasping for air. His expression was one of infinite agony. The Uchiha's sight was gone. Blood was leaking from the empty sockets where his eyes used to be.

Black flames of Amaterasu engulfed his form, slowly consuming him. He turned his blackened face to the side, from where invisible until now figure was approaching him.

"Our deal is now concluded, Uchiha," grated an inhuman voice. "Let's hope the kid is up to the task. More than he'll ever know is now riding upon his shoulders."

The Soul King channeled his power into his right hand and trusted it into the disintegrating form of Uchiha Itachi, grabbing his very soul. The immortal being, used it as a catalyst for their plan.

It acted as both anchor and a key, allowing him to open a tunnel to the past. It made making something that should have been impossible a reality.

The power of the god of Death erased the future of a part of the multiverse, resetting it's timeline from a specific point.

At least that was the plan. The Shinigami king barely stayed on his feet, exhausted. The dice was thrown.

Little did he knew, that his act created unanticipated ripples, which were already changing the destiny of two dimensions. Not necessary for the better.

In another world, on the border of a country called the Land of Fire, a tear in the air appeared behind a young man, who was walking up a dust covered road. A ripple distorted the air and hit him in the back, throwing his unconscious body so it crashed into a nearby ditch.

**=CE=**

**Chapter 1**

**Land of Fire, near the border **

A pitiful moan heralded Ichigo's return to awareness.

'That fucking hurt.' was his first coherent thought.

Kurosaki looked around and groaned. He was laying in a heap, into a dust covered ditch. He cursed quietly and dragged his aching body to the nearby road, which was little more than a stretch of packed dirt.

His head was spinning, making it hard to keep ones balance. As a bonus, that was further aggravating the killing headache he was suffering from. It was the reason why he was slaying unsteady.

A part of Ichigo prayed that he was suffering from a strangely realistic hallucination. The alternatives were... unpleasant, to say at least.

His mind was throbbing, trying to merge the two lives he had lived. That of the Kurosaki Ichigo from Karakura town, a Substitute Soul Reaper. And his new one, that of an Uchiha Ichigo, a young man who had been trained as a Shinobi, a professional killer.

The memories were the easy part. What was treating to split his head asunder was the clash of the morals his two selves possessed.

At the core they were deceptively the same. Both youngsters were protectors at heart. Yet the Uchiha, the one who had been raised in the Elemental Nations... He was an efficient killer, who saw common murder as mere necessity for survival in this world. Something that Kurosaki Ichigo would have found unacceptable...

And with that thought he had a revelation. The reason for that man, Itachi's, actions suddenly became clear.

Ichigo, the teen raised in Karakura, he simply didn't have the mindset necessary to survive in this new world. The training he had live through... it simply wouldn't have been enough. He didn't possess the killer instinct to make good enough use of it. But this other Ichigo... He had it in spades...

"Damn it!" Kurosaki grumbled.

He knew what Itachi wanted. It was more of a general sense than anything else, but Ichigo was ready to swear that he was right.

Itachi was from the future of this world. A dark one to boot. The man wanted it changed, while for one reason or another he couldn't do it himself. So he somehow reached Ichigo and roped him into this scheme.

However Kurosaki didn't have acceptable choice. So he agreed. Whatever this world was going to throw against him, it didn't matter. He would face it and overcome it. Ichigo had to do it. He had no other acceptable choice.

Failure meant that he won't see his sisters ever again and Rukia remaining at the non existent mercy of those Shinigami. And that was something he would never accept.

Ichigo looked around assessing his surroundings. He was on a third rate route, just a packed dirt which would be a nightmare to navigate after a bit of rain hit it. He was surrounded by lush forests, more vibrant than almost anything he had seen back in his world.

'Yeah, it hasn't really sunk in,' Kurosaki thought. He was in another dimension all together. As a Shinigami, even a substitute, who hadn't paid much attention to Rukia's explanations, mainly because of the scratches that passed for her drawings, he at least intellectually knew that such things existed. Like Soul Society, the so called Heaven as well as Hell and Hueco Mundo, the realm of the Hollows.

Now he was in another dimension. The strangest part was that it felt normal. More than that. It felt like home.

"The Elemental Nations. The Land of Fire, Hi no Kuni." Ichigo muttered quietly.

Those names felt strange on his tongue. Yet in the same time, they were familiar, just as saying Japan and Karakura town were.

There was another name. His destination. The place where his future laid.

"Konoha." he whispered.

**=CE=**

**Flashback**

Ichigo was back again in the small secluded house that had been his home for the past eighteen years. He was kneeling next to the bed in which his sick mother was resting.

"Ichigo, it's time to tell you the whole story about your father and rest of your family..." she rasped.

"Kaa-san..." he muttered.

"It won't be long, child. Perhaps it was mistake to keep it a secret for so long," Masaki coughed. "You know you are an Uchiha, ever since those bandits attacked you and you unlocked your Sharingan."

Ichigo's answer was only a curt nod. Two years ago, during the summer, when he was working at a nearby inn, he was attacked by a bunch of cutthroats while returning home with his weekly pay.

They had figured him as an easy victim. Just a civilian kid to rough up and get a bit of spare change as a bonus. It should have been easy to dispatch the fools. After all, Ichigo has been training with Masaki ever since he was tree years old...

He had underestimated them. The thought that one of the rabble could be a former Shinobi never crossed him mind.

When they drew weapons, Ichigo had attacked, cutting the bandits down before most of them could even react. Only two of the six men had been still standing moments later, when one of the fallen, who had some kind of a blood line limit wasn't as dead as Ichigo thought.

A rusty kunai had bit in his leg, sending him tumbling to the ground. The remaining pair of cutthroats had fallen upon him like a bunch of rabid dogs.

Then it happened. He felt a burning in his eyes and the world appeared to slow down. It was an illusion, granted by his awakening Sharingan. His perception of time was what had changed.

Thanks to his changed eyes, Ichigo had time to overcome his shock, and was able to easily dispatch the remaining bandits.

That day he learned that he was an Uchiha. In hind-sign, it was a good thing that for one reason or another his mother had decided to keep the two of them hidden. Few years before that accident, the Uchiha clan in Konoha had been all but destroyed by one of their own. By Uchiha Itachi.

And now he found out that the man who had slaughtered his relatives was no other than his half brother.

"Your father name was Uchiha Fugaku, the Head of the Clan in Konoha." his mother's words were almost stunning.

So now he had a name to the face of the man who had visited him few times when he had been a small child.

**Flashback end**

**=CE=**

**Land of Fire, near the border**

Ichigo shuddered. Part of him was in awe from what Itachi had wrought. What the Shinobi had done bordered on a god like act.

He refused to believe that all of it was just a coincidence. A woman who for all intents and purposes was Masaki, his mom, existing in this world and raising up a boy who was almost his twin, if it wasn't for the onyx eyes and hair...

There was a whole new persona in Kurosaki's head. One with which he was almost completely merged. The most amazing, or terrifying thing was, that this Uchiha Ichigo, was what he would have been if raised the same way. Hell, he didn't know if he was merging with someone else's memories or if he truly lived through those eighteen years, without remembering his life on Earth.

That was disturbing.

Now he knew more than enough to survive in the bloody world of the ninjas. While remaking him, Itachi had shared with him a lot of the Uchiha clan techniques. Then there were the taijutsu, kenjutsu and ninjutsu which he was taught by his mother. Not to mention the genjutsu he had learned from scrolls left by his father on his last visit.

While Ichigo was no genius like Itachi, he had the nagging feeling that he was a bit smarter now, more mature. Or perhaps it was the fact that thanks to his new life, he was no longer the headstrong teen who was ready to hurl himself into trouble without thinking. Perhaps that was the way he would be if his mother hadn't been killed by that damn Hollow, all those years ago.

Yet, there was a part, which was terrifying for the boy from Karakura town.

In this brand new world, he was a Shinobi, with all that it entailed. He already had human blood on his hands. He had killed humans.

Now he was a trained killer with one of the rarest Dojutsu's in existence. If what Itachi had implanted in his mind besides the false (or is it real second life?), was true, now he was a target. Or would be one as soon as the knowledge of his existence started spreading.

His very eyes were a prize almost beyond belief. Only three pairs of Sharingan eyes were supposed to exist, with one more single eye carried by a Konoha Jonin.

Ichigo had a decision to make. Technically, there was the slim chance that he could live below the various Shinobi's radar. As a civilian. A normal life.

However that would gain him nothing. Kurosaki doubted that as he was right now, even if returned to his world in a hale body, he would be mach for that man. Byakua was it?

Now he had training, thanks to Masaki. Which was great. Ichigo didn't doubt that now he would be able to kick the ass of his old self any day of the week. But that meant nothing.

Not against a Captain from Soul Society. A man who probably possessed more raw power than himself. And if you could trust Itachi, possibly centuries of experience. Not a combination he was ready to face any time soon.

At least he still had his free will. There was no compulsion or other similar arcane stuff forcing him to follow the agreement. Ichigo was free to make his own choices.

He could fade into the shadows, live and die as an ordinary man. No one was going to stop him. But that would mean that he won't be able to see his sisters and even his goat of a father even again. His friends... and Rukia, the woman to whom he owed his family's lives.

That left one acceptable alternative. Konoha.

Nevertheless, that wasn't a choice he liked. It meant embracing the life of a Shinobi. He would have to kill again. Not in self defense or to protect others. At least not only for those two reasons, with which he was strangely OK.

As Itachi said, he would have to walk a path of blood and tears. The same path that had torn asunder Itachi's heart.

"And how the hell do I know that?" Ichigo wondered aloud.

The shoulders of the substitute shinigami slumped while he was deep in thought. 'A life of a hired killer. What the hell did I get myself into?' he thought.

At least the dizziness was leaving him. He shook his head in a partially successful attempt to clear it. Then it hit him.

A question he needed answer to.

He started patting the various pockets on the tactical vest he was wearing over a dark blue shirt. He found a sealing scroll, and retrieved it.

"Let's see how this Chakra really works." he said.

Ichigo concentrated, calling his new power to the surface. To his surprise it was like a torrent. Vaster than his memories led him to believe. Perhaps it was a consequence of him being a substitute Shinigami. After all, the Chakra was supposed to be an energy which was a mixture of the physical and spiritual power of a person. As a Shinigami, Ichigo had a vast load from the second type. Even better, now he knew that his body was in much better condition than it had been back on Earth. If it was his body...

He channeled a bit of Chakra through his right arm and made a single hand sign. A puff of smoke later he was holding a small wooden box, which had appeared over the sealing scroll.

"Neat, that's useful." he said.

Ichigo pocketed the scroll and opened the box. It had a small mirror and was full with what a ninja would need to change his or her appearance without using ninjutsu.

Kurosaki stared in his reflection. The face was his, even if it was few years older. More mature. But what got to him was the jet black hair and onyx eyes. The same as those of the Uchiha Ichigo whose live he apparently lived. Or simply remembered.

He decided to bite the bullet and channeled a bit of Chakra to his eyes. The action was natural, as if he had done it countless times. He saw his irises becoming crimson and morphing, until they had tree tomoes each. Ichigo stared in his eyes, feeling a mix of dread and wonder.

His new situation was starting to sink in with every passing moment.

He had the features of a stereotypical Uchiha. 'It's a good thing that thanks to Mum, I don't have the standard stick up the ass which is one of my clan's trademarks.' a small, broken smile appeared on his lips.

Ichigo froze at that. He just thought of himself as an Uchiha.

'You are one, down to the DNA.' a quiet, treacherous voice whispered at the back of his head.

Ichigo stared at his reflection for a long time.

From the moment he awoke in the ditch, a part of him knew that he was changed. At least intellectually. However, deep down in his heart, another piece of him, had been in denial.

Now when he saw the changes wrought upon his very being, Ichigo froze. The reality of his situation struck him like a sledgehammer, paralyzing him.

A quiet whisper barely registered to his frozen mind.

_"Abandon your fear, Ichigo. Move forward, never look back. You'll age if you pull back. You'll die if you hesitate. This is the world of your ancestors, your birthright. Embrace it or you and everyone you hold dear will die."_

Ichigo shuddered. Suddenly, his back was covered by a sheet of cold sweat. This new voice was intimately familiar. He had never heard it before, yet it Kurosaki knew it as well as the voices of his sisters and father.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Ichigo regulated the flow of his Chakra, helping his body to calm down faster. It was one of the many tricks taught by his mother.

Soon his trembling stopped and he felt a bit better. Ichigo closed the box and resealed it in its scroll.

"Uchiha Ichigo." he declared aloud, the name flowing naturally from his lips, just as easy as he would say Kurosaki.

The name sounded right. Like it was a missing piece that had finally found its place.

Ichigo shook his head in regret. He couldn't afford to think of himself as Kurosaki. Not in this world. The son of Isshin was no cold blooded killer, something Ichigo had to become in order to survive. Something he hoped he would be able to live with.

He took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. Ichigo stretched himself and turned his head in the direction where Konoha waited.

He checked up his equipment, despite knowing where each piece was tucked in on his person. Pouches of kunai and shuriken. A pair of trench knives tucked in his boots. The tanto on his back.

Six smoke bombs, meters of ninja wire as well as provisions for a couple of weeks sealed into various scrolls.

Everything was in place just as he remembered.

Ichigo started moving towards Konoha at leisurely pace. He needed to sort through the memories of his second life and decide who was Uchiha Ichigo before entering the leaf.

**=CE=**

**Part 2**

**The Land of Fire, two days later**

Ichigo was about a day from Konoha, at least with the slow pace (for a ninja) he was moving at.

The last couple of days had made wonders for his mind and heart. The slow journey gave him time to straighten up his emotions and come at peace with his situation. Or so he believed.

Ichigo saw no good alternative, so he had accepted the inevitable. The personality he had from his life in the Elemental Nations, he had more or less merged with it.

In his opinion, that act changed him surprisingly little. At least the core of who he was remained intact.

However, the way he carried himself, well it was different, yet the same. Outwardly he had the mask of cold, almost severe man. What truly changed in Ichigo, was the death of what was left from his innocence. It was something he regretted, but accepted as necessary.

He was grimly aware of all the evils in the world, especially the Shinobi one. He was somehow aware what Itachi had done, besides the rumors his mum and he had heard ever since the massacre. Hell, he even thought that he had met the bastard once, in the inn he had been working in.

At the time, Ichigo had thought that he was entertaining just another drunk man by listening to his rambling.

But now, when he had met Itachi in the future, he wondered about it. What he had learned on that day, it would open a whole new can of worms once Ichigo reached Konoha.

Ichigo's musings were abruptly interrupted by the sound of clashing metal and a woman's shout. The rumble came from the front and to the left of his current path.

Ichigo cursed under his breath. He hadn't paid enough attention to his surroundings, and that was a good way to get oneself killed.

He dashed in the direction the sounds of combat were coming from, while trying to move as stealthy as possible. He wanted to know what he was getting into before acting. Just another consequences of the training he had received.

No more headlong, unthinking charges for him. Masaki had beaten that tendency out of him at early age.

Ichigo found himself concealed in the corona of a high tree, which was overlooking a small clearing in the forest floor.

He saw a slender, black haired woman. She was in the middle of the meadow, supporting herself on a tree-trunk. She was wearing a red armored blouse with a single sleeve. Most of her body was covered by a form fitting dress which on first glance appeared to be made from bandages.

What got his attention was the metal protector on her forehead. So she was a Konoha Kunochi.

After nothing that fact, Ichigo continued examining her. Her mostly bare hands and upper thighs were wrapped in bandages. She was bleeding from an ugly gash on her lover right thigh.

Her unusual eyes, red with double rings, something Ichigo was able to see easily thanks to his active Sharingan, was glaring at three men who were carefully approaching her. Her look held a trace of despair. If he wasn't mistaken, she was out of Chakra.

When he saw her eyes, Ichigo's mind promptly supplied her name. His mother had kept some kind of connection with Konoha, which allowed her to somehow receive information about the village and the more famous people within. This woman was Kurenai Yūhi, the Leaf's genjutsu mistress.

As she was, wounded and without enough juice for any meaningful jutsus, she was in serious trouble. Desperate even.

Ichigo glanced at the men and frowned. They gave him the impression of a bunch of hungry jackals.

He drew four kunai in his left hand and prepared to jump in.

"The bitch has a nice piece of ass. And after she cut down Hori and his team, she is out of Chakra. We can have a bit of fun after all the shit she made us go through." sneered one of the men.

Kurenai glared defiantly at that man, who was their apparent leader. He had a Suna head-protector, but the symbol of the village was scratched. He as well as the rest of the men and women who had originally attacked her, were all missing nin mercenaries. Kurenai had cut down most of their numbers before she was forced to flee.

During her flight towards Konoha, she had dealt with two more but was wounded in the process. Out of Chakra too.

Unfortunately, her hopes of meeting one of the Leaf patrols came to naught.

Ichigo glared at the tree bastards. At least one of them was a would be rapist. With that thought, Ichigo's face became a mask of fury.

It appeared that his first hits wouldn't be ones he was going to regret.

Ichigo's mind focused on the task at hand and became coldly calm. It appeared that the mental conditioning during his second life was still well and kicking.

The men prepared to pounce at Kurenai from three sides. When Ichigo acted, he caught them by total surprise. The first idea anyone had of his presence, was when he threw his four kunai at single target.

That turned out to be a good idea. The missing nin's instincts and reflexes, which were honed in dozens of skirmishes, were up to the task. Despite being caught off guard, the shinobi dove to the right, evading two of the weapons which were aimed at the back of his head and his spine.

The other two kunai went at the most likely direction the man would evade. He was the right most of the trio so that constricted a bit the ways he could go if he didn't want to get in the way of his friends or in Kurenai's range.

One blade went wide from its target, while the second, nicked the missing nin in the leg. He was too slow to evade the next pair of weapons which struck him in the neck and left eye.

Before the corpse could fall on the ground, Ichigo was upon his next target. He had his tanto in hand and was slashing at the surprised shinobi.

The missing nin appeared to be moving in slow motion thanks to the enhanced perception granted by the Sharingan. The man, who had a kunai in each hand, tried to parry the coming strike, but for Ichigo it was a child's play to slip his blade through the guard of the surprised ninja. A single lighting strike and the tanto tore out the throat of the shinobi, leaving him to fall to the ground drowning in his own blood.

That left Ichigo to deal with only the would be rapist, who was on the other side of Kurenai.

That man threw a pair of kunai at the Kunochi, who used her own weapon to deflect them.

Ichigo channeled Chakra to his legs and vaulted over the wounded woman, while his hands were busy making hand-signs.

"Katon Karyu Endan!(Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!)" - Ichigo said quietly.

While jumping, he had gathered Chakra within his lungs and now exhaled. A long stream of fire shot from his mouth, like it was the muzzle of a flamethrower. The missing nin had a single instant to start screaming before he was engulfed by a torrent of liquid fire. A moment later he was silenced forever when a stream of burning air entered his lungs and charred them from withing.

The blazing remains of the nameless shinobi crumbled to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

Ichigo checked the other two ninjas he dealt with, to make sure they were taken out for real, while scanning the surrounding forest for other threats. He had sensed no one else nearby, before he attacked, but one could never be too careful.

Ichigo cleared his tanto on the clothes of one of the dead men and turned his attention to Kurenai, all the while he was trying no to think about what he did. He had snuffed out the life of tree people, and it was easy. Too damn easy.

With supreme effort of will, he ordered his hands to remain steady, fighting the shock which was rearing its ugly head and trying to crash his system. Ichigo forced his Chakra to run faster through its network, partially counteracting the physical effects of the shock.

"Thanks!" Kurenai rasped.

One had was clutching her bleeding thigh, but the other was holding a kunai, which had its edge pointing straight at Ichigo.

He almost smiled. Good girl. A healthy dose of paranoia was a vital survival tool.

Ichigo was glad that she spoke. Her voice was enough to distract him from thinking too much about what he just did. That was a very good think at the moment.

He looked her in the eyes, causing her to gasp softly.

Kurenai bit her lip, forestalling a colorful curse. The man who just saved her had the Sharingan! As far as she knew, there were only three living men with that bloodline. Sasuke, who was still in the academy, that traitor Itachi and Kakashi.

Going by appearance, which didn't mean much, her savior was none of them. He was reasonably deadly, too. Granted the three remaining outlaws, were not particularly strong, and if she wasn't wounded and exhausted, Kurenai would have been able to handle them equally easy. Despite that, the man had dispatched her tormentors making it look easy. She logged off the lack of protector showing a village allegiance for later.

"Are those all of them?" asked Ichigo.

"In the immediate vicinity. There are two more of them, wounded, five kilometers or so in that direction." Kurenai nodded to her right.

The taunt lines of distress marring her face relaxed a bit. She was becoming deadly pale.

"_Blood loss and shock." _noted the maddeningly familiar voice.

"Let me see that leg," Ichigo spoke softly and knelt in front of the woman. He ignored the kunai still pointed at him. "That's unpleasant scratch." he muttered.

"You don't say." deadpanned Kurenai.

She tried to remain focused on the man. Her eyelids were heavy with fatigue. The kunai few from her her fingers which no longer had the strength to hold it and she slid down the three trunk, until she was sitting on the ground with her back pressed to its hard bark.

Ichigo saw her slipping into unconsciousness and slapped her face.

"None of that miss. Stay with me." he told her with a voice brooking no argument. It usually worked with most patients in his father clinic back in Japan.

Kurenai yelped when his fingers pressed her leg next to the would and her eyes focused on him.

"Stay awake!" he ordered, while retrieving a med pack from one of the sealing scrolls he was carrying.

She grumbled quietly at her unexpected savior.

"Not to be ungrateful, but who are you and what are you doing here? You are no Konoha shinobi, are you?"

Ichigo huffed while examining the wound. It was ugly, with jagged edges. Despite bleeding a lot, it wasn't deep enough to nick the artery. If it was, Kurenai would have bled out by now.

Ichigo grabbed a pack of blood-clothing powder from the med pack and tore it open.

"This will sting." he warned, before emptied it over the open wound. The blood appeared to be boiling and hissed as the antiseptics in the powder went to work. Seconds later the wound stopped bleeding.

Kurenai grunted in pain and gave Ichigo an unladylike curse.

"As for you questions, no I'm not a Konoha shinobi. I know of the place, but haven't been there yet. As for why I'm here, I'm on my way to the village. I hope to be accepted as a shinobi of Konoha."

He retrieved a pack containing field bandages and started opening it.

"On my way there I stumbled upon these unpleasanties. Seriously, aren't there supposed to be patrols this close to Konoha?" he asked while bandaging her leg.

"There should be. I was hoping to meet one of them." she grumbled. "You didn't tell me your name."

"Ladies first."

Kurenai chuckled.

"I'm a Kunochi. That automatically disqualify me from the lady department. Kurenai Yuhi." she added almost as an afterthought.

"A fitting name. It suits you." Ichigo gave her a reassuring smile.

He finished bandaging her leg and retrieved a pair of blood replenishing pills as well, and unsealed a canteen full of water. He handled them to his patient and examined his handiwork. It should hold up until they reach Konoha.

His smile became a bit thinner and he looked Kurenai in the eyes, wondering how she would react to his name. Yeah, he knew she noticed his Sharingan, but as Kakashi could attest, you didn't necessary have to be an Uchiha to have their eyes.

"I'm Uchiha Ichigo." he said in a level voice. "Nice to meet you, Kurenai."

Despite seeing his eyes earlier, the Kunochi was startled by the name. Perhaps was the blood loss messing with her head. It shouldn't have come as such a surprise. Or it was just because of what everyone believed about the Uchiha – only two still living members of the clan. Meeting a third would be a surprise even if she was thinking straight.

"An Uchiha?" the name poured from her crimson lips before her mind caught up with her mouth.

Ichigo smirked.

"I know. It's hard to believe. Another one of my clan. I even avoided the mandatory implantation of stick up my but." Ichigo smirked at the Kunochi.

A part of him was surprised by the way he was acting. Almost flirting with the older woman.

Kurenai chuckled, despite the suspicion she felt towards her savior.

Ichigo saw a brief flicker of nervousness and unease on her face.

"It's fine not to trust me yet. After all it comes with being a shinobi. I just hope you'll find me somewhat trustworthy after my inevitable meeting with a Yamanaka. Now, let's go."

Ichigo packed up the med-pack, winked at Kurenai and picked her up, bridal style, prompting an indignant yelp.

"It will be faster that way, besides you shouldn't walk on that leg until a real doctor checks it up."

"I'm not a bloody princess in distress!" Kurenai grumbled.

"Nope! You are much more beautiful than any princess I've seen."

'At least the few I've seen in Japan on the TV.' That he didn't add aloud.

Ichigo sped through the forest, moving as fast as possible without causing too much pain to the wounded Kunochi.

**=CE=**

**Part 3**

**Konoha's main gate, next morning**

Ichigo and his patient reached Konoha shortly after sunrise. The reason for that was simple. During the night, Kurenai was mostly delirious, and he had never been to the village. Ichigo was sure that he went the wrong way a couple of times before stumbling upon the main route leading into the Hidden Leaf.

The first thing he saw was the massive wall surrounding Konoha. It was impressive, wide and tall, with a glass like surface, made of Chakra resistant mineral. Scaling it would be a nightmare.

To make matters worse for any prospective attacker, the forest around the wall was cleared for about a kilometer, making it into a nice killing ground. Any assault without inside help would be an unmitigated bloodbath.

That was a plus for his prospective new home. However reaching Konoha without meeting a single patrol – not so much.

When he reached the main gate, which was a big damned monstrosity, Ichigo was finally confronted by Konoha Shinobi. A squad of half dozen ANBU shunshined around him, surrounding him.

"Halt!" growled the apparent leader.

Seriously, did they think that he roughed up Kurenai and then decided that it would be a good idea to bring her to the village's doorsteps? Using the main road for the last leg of the journey too.

Granted, there probably were at least few shinobi who were not only crazy enough to try it, but good enough to have a chance of pulling it off...

Ichigo gently shook the woman in his arms, who had fallen asleep few hours ago. Her fatigue had gotten the better of her still lingering mistrust.

"Hey, sleeping beauty! Please tell this nice ANBU that I'm not an enemy. Preferably, before they loose their patience and decide to poke me with various sharp and pointy implements." Ichigo said cheerfully.

He wondered if he would have behaved the same way in Japan if his mum hadn't been killed, and was there to raise him.

The Uchiha could almost swear that the ANBU leader was eye twitching under his wolf mask.

Despite his cheerful mask, Ichigo was ready for action. The men and women surrounding him were ready to attack with a moment's notice.

"Uhm, what?" - the Kunochi's sleepy voice lessened the tension. She opened her eyes and blinked, still half asleep.

"Irritated ANBU, who by the looks of it, don't like me very much." he winked at the sleepy woman in his arms.

As she was right now, she was a cutie, who reminded him of his sisters. Which in turn called in a pang of regret withing his heart. It would be a long time before he could see the girls again.

Kurenai snorted at his antics and looked around. Here eyes stopped on Wolf and she pointed at Ichigo with a thumb.

"He saved me from the remains of missing nins who attacked me while I was returning from assignment. The Hokage would want to speak with because of the bloodline Ichigo-san possesses. Please escort him to the tower."

The ANBU leader nodded at Ichigo in a way that contained the barest hint of respect. He nodded at one of his subordinates.

"Eagle, take Kurenai-san off his hands and bring her to the hospital."

"Hey! I can walk!" grumbled the said Kunochi.

The ANBU leader ignored her. His attention was on Ichigo.

"You stranger, follow us. We'll see if you are worth the Hokage's time."

**Hokage Tower, Konoha**

Sarutobi was waging an eternal war against the bane of his existence, the multi headed hydra known as paperwork. The old leader was once again pissed at Namikaze Minato for dieing and leaving him to deal with the village affairs once again! The last time Hiruzen had retired for a good reason, damn it!

The old man glared at the stacks of paper covering his desk. And it was only seven in the morning! Even using a couple of shadow clones, the maximum he could afford without compromising his Chakra reserves (after all, he was no longer a young man), he would be stuck in the tower the whole day, while dealing with the damn paperwork!

He was hoping for crisis, anything really, before the ever increasing stacks of documents on his desk buried him alive. Little did he know that his prayers were about to be answered.

As a result his headaches were going to at least triple, but that was another story altogether...

It all started with a knock on the door.

"Enter!" shouted Sarutobi, while skimming through a document outlining the maintenance costs of the training grounds for he next trimester.

An ANBU, Wolf entered. Hiruzen nodded him to speak.

"Hokage-sama, a man just arrived in Konoha. He brought a wounded Yuhi Kurenai, who he saved from an ambush. As we speak she is in the hospital, being treated. They both claim that you should speak with this man, regarding his bloodline limit."

Interesting. A glance towards the mountain of paperwork convinced Sarutobi that he should meet the man who saved on of his Kunochi.

"By all means, bring him in." said the Hokage.

He leaned back in his chair and got his pipe out from on of his desk's drawers.

Wolf's squad escorted in a black haired youngster. About eighteen years old. He was wearing a standard shinobi outfit if from an older design.

Naturally, the young man was disarmed before being allowed in the Hokage's presence.

Sarutobi met the visitor's eyes, which were two onyx unflinching pools.

"Old man, you might want to decide who ought to know my story. It concerns an S-class village secret."

Sarutobi's eyes twitched at the disrespectful words. Only Naruto, who was like a grandson to him could address him in such a way! The Hokage's face became grim. Next to the stranger, the ANBU stiffened, ready to attack.

"What is that secret boy?"

Ichigo smirked and channeled a bit of Chakra into his eyes.

Hiruzen glared at the young man. His visitor possessed a fully formed Sharingan. And Sarutobi had never seen him before in his life.

"What really happened to my clan." deadpanned Ichigo.

"Leave us." ordered the Hokage.

The ANBU stiffened for a moment, but obeyed. When the door closed behind the last of them, Sarutobi glared at his visitor. He believed to know, or worse, actually knew too much about Konoha's dirty secrets. Hiruzen's left hand curled around he hilt of a kunai hidden under his desk. Just in case.

"Speak." ordered the Hokage.

"I'm Uchiha Ichigo. My mother died from the wasting disease two weeks ago. On her dying bed she told me the truth about my father. Or so she claimed. So I came here for answers. According to her, my father was Uchiha Fugaku, and I apparently have a couple of half brother's left. A simple DNA test should be able to reveal if its true or not." Ichigo shrugged.

'Damn that old geezer!' Hiruzen scowled. Fugaku was making problems even from beyond the grave, the damn bastard.

In the grand scheme of things, it really didn't matter whether Fugaku was the young man's father. At least for the next few years, he would be the only loyal Uchiha who is apparently old enough to have a seat on the Council. Which would make him the Uchiha clan leader despite Sasuke's parentage. And if Ichigo was really the boy's half-brother...

To make matters worse, thanks to that Dojutsu, the council would be failing all over themselves to please Ichigo. Not to mention the mess that would be the CRA (clan restoration act) which would undoubtedly be activated by at least the civilian council.

While Sarutobi was pondering the waves that the appearance of another Uchiha would cause, said man decided to drop his next bomb.

"I would want to ask you a question, Hokage-sama. Now that you know who I am."

"Who you claim to be. Until the DNA test is ready." said Sarutobi.

Ichigo, had become deadly serious.

"Was it you, Hokage-sama, or the council, who signed up the kill order for my whole clan? I know that Fugaku planned treason, but that was no reason to wipe out the whole clan, down to the civilians and children!"

Two spinning, Sharingan eyes bored into the Hokage.

"I also know that my brother Itachi is no traitor."

The Professor slumped back into his chair. That was one secret that could never see the light of day. His first instinct was to personally drag this Uchiha to the T&amp;I department and oversee his interrogation.

"That is a bold claim." Sarutobi answered calmly.

Ichigo rolled his eyes and shut down hid Sharingan.

"Two years ago, on the anniversary of the massacre, I had a chat with Itachi." Ichigo dropped his next bomb.

He barely contained the mirth he was feeling. This was one of the few gifts the Future Itachi had left him. A way to mess up with both the Hokage and prank his past self. On that night, the rogue shinobi had really been drinking in an inn. In the general vicinity where Ichigo had been working at the time.

That statement surprised Hiruzen. The old man felt a headache taking root behind his eyes. He was going to "love" this story. He could feel it in his bones.

"Imagine my surprise, when one evening a shinobi arrived at the inn I was part time working and began draining our liquor reserves. Few hours later he even wanted a listener, and as I was the one who was tending the bar..." Ichigo trailed off.

Sarutobi's face was ashen. He could scarcely believe that Itachi could be so careless, but on the other hand, the Hokage had no illusions that the boy emerged unscarred from that night.

"Itachi told me a very interesting story. One of treason and massacre in the night..." Ichigo continued speaking. "I wonder, Hokage-sama, are you aware that he wasn't alone that night."

That threw Hiruzen out for a loop. As far as he and the council knew, Itachi acted alone.

"Wiping out the whole clan was not his idea. I know that his original orders to deal with the traitors were modified, and he was forced to make a deal in order to save our brother, Sasuke. I just don't know whose idea was the massacre."

Sarutobi was silent for nearly a minute.

"Yet, you are telling me this. If I am the one who ordered every last Uchiha to die..."

"All I told you would be more than enough to sign my death warrant." Ichigo finished the thought. "Yet, here I am."

"So you are reasonable sure that I wasn't the one who have the final order. Why."

"Itachi respects you."

"And that won't be the case with whoever ordered a massacre instead of dealing with only the traitors." added the Hokage. "Who 'helped' Itachi?"

Ichigo winced at that question.

"A man who claimed to be Uchiha Madara." he said quietly.

"Madara is dead. Hirashima ended his madness." stated Hiruzen.

"Most likely. As I said, that's what the man claimed. It was something Itachi himself no longer believed when we spoke. Yet, whoever that man was, he was extremely powerful."

Sarutobi grimaced and started massaging his temples.

"Your story needs to be verified," the Hokage glared at his visitor. "You are going to be causing me headaches for a long time, aren't you?" muttered the old man.

Ichigo smirked in answer.

"I'm guessing that I have a scheduled R&amp;R with the Torture and Interrogation Division, and the nearest Yamanaka, who is cleared for my clan's dirty laundry?" asked Ichigo. "If you are wondering, I don't have Fugaku's delusions of grandeur. Seriously, how in Kami's name, the damned walled compound, all the money, power and prestige, not to mention the control over the military police was not enough?!" Ichigo explained in exhaperation.

The Uchiha shook his head sadly, mirroring the actions of Itachi when he learned about the conspiracy.

Sarutobi looked at the young man, wondering if his appearance was a disaster waiting to happen or an opportunity for Konoha.

"You have an appointment with Inoichi. We'll talk afterwards."

**=CE=**

**Part 4**

**Hokage Tower, Konoha**

Six hours and one mind rap... ahem, interrogation, later, Ichigo was led back to the Hokage office. Inside, Sarutobi was reading through Kurenai's preliminary report after hearing what Inoichi had found. That piece of work had interrupted him, while he was taking some balsam for the soul. More precisely, Hiruzen was reading through the latest installment of Icha-Icha, a hard cover copy, which had dedication and autograph by Jiraya.

That of course had to be interrupted by an ANBU, bringing in Ichigo's interrogation report. As far as Inoichi could determine, there were no false memories and the young man was telling the truth as well as he knew it.

More curious was the fact that the Uchiha wanted to become a shinobi of the village. A genuine desire. According to Inoichi, Ichigo was as trustworthy as someone who had grown outside Konoha could be. It was a rare endorsement from the Yamanaka.

"Sit." ordered Hiruzen and Ichigo did so, slumping in the nearest chair.

"You want to become a Shinobi of Konoha. Why?"

"All, hopefully sane, family I still have left in this world is here. I want to find my clan's heritage and I don't believe that there is a better way than this. Besides Fugaku left a huge stain on the Uchiha's honor, one that Itachi, couldn't clear. Not while he is branded as a traitor. I can't allow for treason to be my clan's legacy."

"While you were in the T&amp;I, a blood sample was taken." stated Sarutobi, and Ichigo nodded in response. "The DNA test should be ready sometimes tomorrow. It will show us how big a circus your coming to Konoha will cause."

The Uchiha wince.

"That bad?" Ichigo asked in small voice.

Sarutobi smiled for the first time since entering his office that morning.

"Worse." deadpanned the old man. "It will be a real circus."

"Splendid." grumbled Ichigo.

"After those unpleasantries are done with, there will be a public test of your abilities. It will start after we meet with the council or the next morning depending on how long that mess will continue."

Sarutobi left Kurenai's report on his desk, and looked at Ichigo.

"You did save one of my Kunochi, without being a Konoha shinobi or affiliated in any way with the village, despite the blood leaking in your veins. What reward would you wish?" Hiruzen asked nonchalantly.

Ichigo raised and an eyebrow. Normally if there was a reward to be given, that would be decided by the Hokage. So the question was a test.

"Two things, Hokage-sama. Once the DNA test results are in, I would like to meet my brother Sasuke, before the official announcement of me joining Konoha. I would want him to learn it from me. Besides I would want to meet Sasuke and see what kind of person he is."

Sarutobi nodded in approval.

"Second, I am aware of the so called CRA act. I would want an extension of the period before I am forced to marry at least until I am twenty, preferably twenty one. That's two to three years from now."

"Hmm..." the Hokage was interested by that development. If they could pull it off, it would be some time before various council members could pull their talons in the young man through marriage contracts.

"We'll see what can be done about the CRA. Until the DNA test is ready you'll be staying under guard in one of the free Jonin quarters. Under guard. That goes without saying. As far as Sasuke is concerned, you should be able to meet him after the results came in. Naturally at least until you are made a Konoha Shinobi, you'll be under discrete escort."

"Fair enough." said Ichigo.

'Shower and bed, here I come!' he thought. The interrogation in which Inoichi had taken a tour of his mind, had taken a lot of the Uchiha.

**=CE=**

To his disappointment, Ichigo's first stop was the hospital, where he was prodded with various sharp objects and needles for hours. He got a full examination, which allowed the medics to create a file for him, containing all needed information to put him back together (more or less), when he fucked up on mission.

When that torture was done, Ichigo was able to briefly check on Kurenai, who was napping at the time. She was expected to make a full recovery, however she would be out of action for few months. Her muscle was pretty messed up from the wound.

After all that, Ichigo was finally permitted to go to his quarters. He was led there by the pair of visible ANBU who were escorting them. At least six more were following them just in case. When he reached his spartan temporally home, Ichigo took a long, hot shower, then he ate a couple of chicken sandwiches while downing a lot of apple juice.

Thankfully the little apartment had come with a stocked fridge.

Ichigo cleaned up the dishes and crawled into the bed, where he fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow.

**=CE=**

**Jonin Apartment complex, Konoha**

Ichigo was roused next morning by a female ANBU waring a cat mask. Obviously, a polite worded request from the Hokage, had caused the hospital staff to break all possible records. The DNA results were ready.

"Congratulations, Uchiha-san, you are now a proud owner of a little brother."

"Lucky me." grumbled Ichigo while trying to get himself out of the blankets which were entangled around him.

"You should be able to visit your brother this morning, before the council meeting, which will be at noon."

"Say, Cat-san, are you familiar with the kid? What is he like?" asked Ichigo.

He wondered how precise was Itachi's second gift. Like all the others they were made of information. The whole reason Itachi wanted someone to take care for his little brother was simple. The idiot had messed up the kid with Tsukuyomi, leading to a less than stellar future, which hadn't been helped by a civilian council who were busy kissing the youngster's ass at every turn. Ichigo would have his hands full with his brother.

"Ah, Uchiha-san, its not my place to..."

"That bad?" Ichigo interrupted her.

He finally managed to get out of the blankets. The Substitute Shinigami could swear that under her mask, she was smiling at his antics. Nothing new there.

Ichigo grabbed a set of spare clothes which had been brought by Cat and headed into the bathroom.

"From what I hear, he is at the top of his class." Cat decided to throw him a bone.

"Well, that's great. It's good to know that he's not slacking. So is he a pretender for the best in his year? I remember hearing about some kind of reward for the best graduating student. What was it called, a Rookie of the year or something?"

"I think so, yes." answered Cat.

"I just hope that it won't get up to his head. When all is said and done, it doesn't mean much out in the real word."

The ANBU was intrigued by that answer. There were a lot of people that were going to make that a big deal, but she agreed with her current charge. Outside of Konoha's walls such an academy title meant nothing.

Ichigo dried himself after the shower, got a fast breakfast while chatting with the purple haired ANBU and made his way to the academy. He had less than two hours to go there, meet his brother and be back at the Hokage tower in time for a Council meeting. That wasn't something he was looking up to.

Half an hour later, they reached the academy. It took that long, because until he was officially a Shinobi of Konoha, moving at ninja speed or pulling some other stunt would be frowned upon by his escorts.

At the entrance, Ichigo asked for his brothers classroom. As it turned out, Sasuke's class was on the training grounds behinds the academy, where they had taijutsu practice.

Ichigo's first impression of the education the prospective future Shinobi were receiving wasn't good. When his escorts and he arrived at the training ground, they found out what was passing for taijutsu practice. Sparring was apparently a code for a cat fight. On of which was in progress. A blond and of all things, a pink haired girl were sparring.

What really grated on Ichigo were the squeals of "Sasuke is mine, forehead!" and "Take that, Ino-pig, Sasuke-kun's mine!". This was the real world, not an anime damn it! Right?!

This spectacle was supervised by a middle aged man, with a horizontal scar passing through his nose. The poor fellow looked ready to start banging his head on the nearest flat surface in embarrassment.

"So my brother has fangirls." hissed Ichigo.

He hated those. When younger, he had such back in Karakura town. At least few girls every year were going after him for one reason or another. It was damn creepy. On a good day...

"Obviously." muttered Cat.

Konoha wasn't doing the best impression to Ichigo, who was going to become the village's newest shinobi. It made the ANBU escorting him a bit embarrassed.

Ichigo disregarded the sparing girls and looked over the rest of the kids. He saw a big kid, munching chips, standing next to a thing black haired boy who was sleeping on his feet. Near them was an indigo haired girl, who was wearing a coat resembling an Eskimos outfit of all things. Ichigo was starting to wonder in what mad house he had been sent.

Next was a boy wearing a blue shirt and white shorts... With what appeared to be a duck nest on his head...

Then there was a bespectacled boy with a trench coat, with another child wearing an orange, "Kill me Now" jumpsuit... Seriously, he was starting to miss Karakura High school. Compared to what he was seeing, this here was pure madness... Or just a different dimension.

The next boy was wearing normal clothes, but had a puppy on his head. Ah an Izunuka.

He glanced all over the kids again, this time paying more attention to their faces, especially to the ones of the black haired boys. Oh, joy.

Ichigo should have recognized his brother right away, if it wasn't for the duck nest on his head... He looked at Sasuke more carefully. If he wasn't mistaken, the boy had a deadly case of Emoness that needed to be dealt with ASAP.

This was the first time Ichigo thought that Itachi royally screwed him over with his "little boon" request.

The girls decided to finish their bout at that time, by falling down exhausted while moaning Sasuke's name.

"Poor little brother..." muttered Ichigo.

The next fight was between Sasuke and the orange clad boy, one Uzumaki Naruto. When the girls were helped to their feet by their friends, the two boys got into position.

It was a short fight. The Uzumaki boy charged Sasuke like a street brawler with no concept of taijutsu whatsoever. 'What the hell?! Those are supposed to be senior years in the academy. From what I see, three of them are not good enough to take on the competent thugs in Karakura, much less a shinobi! I'll have to talk with the Hokage about that, before those kids get themselves killed. I only hope he isn't aware of this mess and is willing to fix it.'

At least Sasuke knew the basics and was able to take down the orange menace with a well executed combo. That was followed by an explosive roar of "Sasuke!" from the girls in the class.

For a moment, Ichigo's little brother looked skittish, like a deer caught in the lights of a speeding truck. Fangirls, the Terror from the Deep!

Ichigo shook his head. Too much X-COM. It was time to save the kid from the hungry sharks.

"Uchiha Sasuke, a word please." Ichigo's firm voice cut through the sounds of bloodthirsty predators, ahem, joyful fangirls, redirecting their attention upon himself. That was followed by another round of squeals. 'Fuck! I don't need preteen fangirls!'

Ichigo was starting to hate Itachi...

"SILENCE!" roared the teacher. He was using some kind of Jutsu which made his head few times bigger. The sheer force of the sound was able to subdue the kids. 'That's useful. I'll need to learn it.' thought Ichigo.

"I'm Umito Iruka, the beat handler of these... students." the teacher introduced himself. "Who are you, and why do you need to speak with Sasuke during academy hours."

"Ichigo. Uchiha Ichigo, Umito-san. I need to speak with my little brother on clan business before the council turn my arrival into a circus."

Sasuke who overheard the conversation, scoffed. He had only one brother, whose guts he hated. He had never seen this man before.

Ichigo looked at the kid.

"I am aware you don't know me, Sasuke-kun, "Ichigo spoke in calm tone, similar to what he used when trying to calm down his sisters when they were distraught.

"Why I just arrived in Konoha is a long story, and this is neither the time or place for it. However, do not doubt even for a moment that I am an Uchiha!" declared Ichigo and activated his Sharingan.

Sasuke and the kids who were in position to see his eyes were mesmerized by the sight.

"Umito-san, I can confirm that this man is indeed Uchiha Sasuke's brother." added Cat.

That calmed down the teacher, who had been ready to intervene if the stranger turned out to be a treat for his students.

Sasuke stared at the complete Sharingan with different thoughts than most. He really didn't care if that man was his brother or not. The man had the Sharingan and if Sasuke was lucky, enough power to make him strong enough to kill Itachi. That was all that mattered, to the self styled Avenger.

**=CE=**

**Fifteen years ago, near the border with Wave County**

A three years old Ichigo had trouble staying in one place. To be fair, he was bouncing around the kitchen of the small house. Today was the day! He was about to start ninja training! His mum had promised!

"We have a lot of energy today, don't we?" Masaki chuckled when she entered the room.

"'m redy!" exclaimed Ichigo.

"First finish your breakfast. Slowly. And don't speak with full mouth!" his mother chided him.

He pouted, but complied. However that didn't stop him from trembling with excitement.

Ten minutes and a lot of bouncing later, the kitchen was cleaned up and they headed outside to start training.

"Kaa-san! I wanna learn jutsu!" exclaimed Ichigo.

He had a blinding smile on his face.

"Hold your horses, Ichi-kun. We'll be learning about Chakra today."

"Aww..." pouted Ichigo. Where was the fun in that? He wanted to learn powerful jutsu!


	2. Chapter 2 v2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto, they belong to their respective owners. I make no money from this story.**

'Bankai!' - thought  
"Bankai!" - speech  
_"Bankai!"_\- Zanpakuto/demon speech

**Chapter 2**

**=CE=**

**Part 1**

**Academy Grounds, Konoha**

Ichigo looked at the eager expression of his brother. Itachi, the bastard, was right. The kid wanted to be an "Avenger". Power thirsty one, too.

"Sasuke-kun, walk with me, please."

Ichigo turned his back to the mob of schoolchildren and headed to the far end of the training ground. He was immediately followed by his minders.

"How have you been, Sasuke-kun? Who is looking after you?"

"Hn. I'm not a kid! I don't need babysitters. I'm fine on my own." grumbled the younger Uchiha.

'So, the kid's whole family gets slaughtered by his brother, he gets further traumatized by a damn genjutsu, and the "powers that be" decided to leave him on his own. What are the odds that he isn't total psycho by now?!' wondered Ichigo.

"Yup. No babysitters for you. However, I recon you could use some additional training. I can show you few tricks. That's what big brothers are for, right?"

They reached the corner of the training ground and Ichigo knelt next to his brother, and patted him on the head, carefully avoiding the damn duck nest. He would have to do something about that thing.

The kid looked at him with big eyes, emotions battling on his face. Oh, the anger was there all right. However there was a lot of fear too. Sasuke obviously expected to be betrayed again. Yet, below all of it, Ichigo thought that he saw a spark of hope. For all the praises that had been heaped upon him, Sasuke had been all but alone since the massacre.

There was a small part left in the "Last Uchiha", that hoped for something more than vengeance. It was all that was left from the cheerful kid that Sasuke used to be before his world ended.

"Where were you?! Why are you alive, when Itachi killed all the rest?! Why?!" Sasuke exploded, venting long suppressed anger.

Ichigo looked sadly at the boy.

"Sasuke, I don't have an answer that can satisfy you. I know that telling you that I was lucky not to be here when it happened, won't cut it. Until few years ago I wasn't aware of my heritage. Itachi, didn't know that I was there to kill. You could say that I'm alive because of dumb luck." Ichigo added quietly.

It was even true, though not in a way Sasuke would suspect. It was luck that Rukia had been there to save Ichigo and his family. Luck played a big part in his early battles, while he didn't really know what he was doing. Now that he had been training for years, he knew how unprepared he was to face ordinary Hollows much less what he had to deal with in the end.

That Menos Grande. Guts and luck. And then, there were those two damn Shinigami! If it wasn't for Itachi, he would have died that night.

"But I know about pain. What is it to loose your family." Ichigo said quietly.

Sasuke scoffed at that and turned to leave. However he was stopped in his tracks by the intensity in the eyes of the elder Uchiha. The boy could see the pain in those dark orbs. He knew that Ichigo was telling the truth.

That's what halted him. For the first time he met someone who appeared to understand the agony with which he lived every day.

"Two weeks ago, I watched my mother die from the wasting disease. As far as I know, she was the only family I had in this world besides you, kid. And if you are wondering, that was too high a price to pay form my complete Sharingan." Ichigo was telling the truth, with tears on his eyes. He was seeing a flashback from that accursed day on the river bank, when the Grand Fisher murdered his mother, as well as the more recent death of Masaki.

Ichigo placed a hand on his brother's shoulder and squeezed it gently.

"You are no longer alone, Sasuke. You don't have to deal with the pain by yourself."

Sasuke was torn. On one side was all the anger and the instructions seared into his skull by Itachi. On another hand he was tired of being alone. Simply striving to become stronger was not nearly enough. He just didn't know another way. He felt empty.

Yet, Sasuke was afraid to hope. There was no guarantee that if he let anyone get close to him again, Itachi would come back and kill them too.

There was a glimpse from the boy he was before Itachi screwed up everything.

"You won't go away? You won't die too?" Sasuke asked in small child's voice.

"I can guarantee the first. I'll do my best not to get killed. I'm just fine in one piece."

"Hn." was the only response. Ichigo wondered if that was a specific Uchiha verbal tick."

"Answering with more than one syllable is all right," joked Ichigo. "You know, they don't take academy points for longer answers." he whispered conspiratorially to his brother.

That earned him a glare from Sasuke.

_"You got your work cut off for ya, King. This one is even denser than you." _this time Ichigo heard a warbling voice in his mind.

"Sasuke, now that I've found I have a little brother, I can't let myself die. On the contrary, I just discovered a reason to live," Ichigo took a deep breath. "Well, kiddo, see you tonight after school. And beware of the fangirls! Evil creatures, I tell you!" - Ichigo smiled at his little brother and patted him on the shoulder.

"It will be all right, Sasuke!" He added as a goodbye, leaving behind a confused younger Uchiha.

It was time to for a chat with the Old man and that fucked up council.

**=CE=**

**Part 2 **

**Hokage Tower, Konoha**

Ichigo went to visit the Hokage before the Council meeting. He had a bone to pick with his future boss.

Uchiha found Sarutobi clad in his full Hokage regalia. The old man was smoking from a long pipe, while a pair of Shadow Clones were trying to make a dent in the paperwork. Hiruzen had to deal with even more of the damn thing than the previous day.

The scene struck Ichigo as somewhat strange. The Hokage should have been able to deal with the damn bureaucracy by using even only the two clones the Uchiha could see. Yet, there was still a mountain of the stuff.

No wonder the problems Ichigo saw were unresolved. Either Sarutobi was too busy to go out in the village and check what was happening for himself (and at least few of his subordinates were feeding him false information), or the solutions of the issues were lost in the bureaucratic machine which was apparently overtaking Konoha.

"Hokage-sama, I have few concerns which I hope will be addressed before the Council meeting starts."

"What is the problem, Uchiha-san?" asked Hiruzen.

"I did meet my brother. Thank you for allowing it. While I was at the academy I saw few disturbing things, Hokage-sama."

Sarutobi raised an eyebrow at that. This definitely wasn't what he had expected to be asked.

"By all means, continue, Uchiha-san."

"I had the unique 'pleasure' to watch two sparring matches, all between kids in my brother's class. If I am not mistaken, they all should be graduating this year."

"Yes, in seven months or so." added the Hokage.

"From the four kids who fought, only one was what could be considered competent with a basic taijutsu. The two girls, whose names I didn't caught and a blonde boy, one Uzumaki Naruto, they had no idea what the hell they were doing. If the rest of their training is at such a level, all they would be good for at graduating would be cannon fodder. Either those three are the sorriest excuses for ninja I've ever seen, or their training had been sabotaged."

Hiruzen was left speechless for a moment. That wasn't what he had been expecting, when Ichigo started speaking about Naruto.

It couldn't be that bad, right? The academy instructors should know better... Sabotaging the kid's training was borderline treason. At best. Yet, the last time Sarutobi checked the academy personally was just before Naruto enlisted. Ever since then, he had made do with written reports.

Sarutobi scowled. This was something he had to deal with personally. He looked behind Ichigo, at Cat, who was standing close to the Uchiha. Ah. The ANBU. She could give him more information about what she saw in the academy.

"Cat. What can you add?" asked Sarutobi.

"Uchiha-san is correct, Hokage-sama..." she related her observations to Konoha's leader.

For a moment, the Hokage's office was drowned by a wave of killing intent.

Sarutobi regained control of his temper and smiled grimly. He was sure that the Council had a hand in this mess. He would have to deal with them carefully, but perhaps this was the chink in their armor he could use to break their power once and for all.

Their very existence was something that shouldn't have been allowed, but the Kami damned bastards had pulled a fast one over him after the Kyuubi's attack. They had went to the Daymo and persuaded him that Konoha needed a ruling council to prevent chaos if the Hokage died.

Some of the more powerful civilians and even few clan leaders, had used the attack and Minato's death, to present Sarutobi with a new status quo supported by the country's ruler. Thanks to the Daimyo's support, he was unable to deal with the Council directly. After the Uchiha massacre, when that clan's seat had become vacant, all Hiruzen could do was stalemate the Council, and stop their worst decisions. Unless he had iron clad proof, which would be acceptable for the Daimyo or another war started, his hands were tied.

Sarutobi looked at Ichigo and smiled. As everything stood right now, he had a stalemated council, where even a single vote could become decisive. And at the next session there would be one more clan leader sitting on the table... One way or another, the Council's hold of Konoha was going to be broken.

Hiruzen retrieved a stack of documents from his desk. Only few signatures were needed and it was done.

"Uchiha-san, let me be the first to congratulate you for the elevation as a clan leader. Let me assure you, I will deal with the issues in the academy myself."

Ichigo stammered a "Thank you". He was stunned by how easy he was elevated to the position of Clan leader. It happened too soon and easy. If it wasn't for the second life he lived in this world, he might not suspected how irregular it was. 'Politics.' thought Ichigo. It was the only logical answer.

"What is the catch, Hokage-sama?" asked Ichigo.

"As you'll soon see, we have a bit of a problem with the Council." said Sarutobi.

And wasn't this an epic understatement...

"Yes, that's the second thing I would like to know... How did Konoha ended being ruled more or less by a civilian council? It is a hidden village after all, and my understanding is that those have always been ran as military dictatorships..."

"Ah. About that..."

**=CE=**

**Part 2**

**Council Chamber, Hokage Tower, Konoha**

By all accounts, the Civilian Council were a big pain in the ass for Sarutobi. That was a big part of the reason why, the old man, had wasted no time in completing the paperwork making Ichigo the Uchiha Clan head, and giving him a seat at the Shinobi Council, which prior to the Kyuubi attack had mostly advisory role for the Hokage.

Oh, he'll be on probation for at least couple of months, during which time he won't be permitted to leave the village, but that was a small price to pay.

Now Ichigo found himself in interesting situation. He knew the other part of the reason why he got this sudden elevation of status. It was another test from Hiruzen. Sarutobi apparently wanted to see what Ichigo would do, now that he had some amount of power within Konoha. While it was a risky approach, it didn't cost Sarutobi a thing. The odds were that Ichigo would be the Uchiha clan head after the Council meeting anyway.

Despite that, Ichigo did appreciate the gesture. It showed at least a small amount of trust, and that was something he could respect. In either of his lives.

The Council chambers were slowly filled by men and women. Some of them were obviously civilians, while others couldn't be mistaken for anything, but accomplished killers. Ichigo nodded respectfully to the Shinobi councilors.

A lot of them were giving him curious or outright hostile glances. There were people from both sides of the civilian/shinobi divide who weren't thrilled by the presence of a stranger to what amounted to an emergency meeting. Ichigo couldn't blame them for that. Being gathered here unexpectedly, usually would mean bad news.

Well, that at least showed that who he was remained a closely guarded secret, which was an unexpected bonus. For once the rumor mill hadn't caught up to the current events.

Thanks to the education he had gotten by his mother and some pieces of information who Itachi had given him, Ichigo was aware who the more important people in the village were. He found himself sitting between Izunuka Tsume, on the left, and Yamanaka Inoichi, with the rest of the Ino–Shika–Chō trio to his right. On the other side of the tables was an apparently crippled old man, with bandaged left arm and eye. Danzo. A very dangerous man. Now it was time to see how politics here compared to the ones back home.

While everyone were taking their seats, and before the Council was in session, a nondescript man from the civilian side bolted to his feet. The man had expected the stranger in the room to leave. This wasn't a place for unknown people.

"Hokage-sama, please tell us why have you gathered us on such a short notice? And who is this man?" despite the words used, the man's tone was anything but respectful. The daggers he glared at Ichigo didn't help either.

The Uchiha wondered how the hell that man was allowed to act in such a way. The situation must be even worse than Sarutobi alluded. In normal circumstances, a civilian, damn it, even a shinobi clan head wouldn't dare question the Hokage in such a disrespectful manner.

Nevertheless, Ichigo remained silent. He was about to use a time honored tactic – leave them enough rope to hang themselves, the bastards.

The Hokage glared at the councilor in question, releasing a bit of killing intent which froze the man where he stood.

"Village business," deadpanned Sarutobi, pointing at Ichigo. "This young man is reason why we are gathered today."

"Why is he here, Hokage-sama? And sitting, showing no respect to the Council?" asked a pink haired woman, who possessed a piercing, almost painful to listen voice.

'Oh, boy. If these people could afford to act in such a way, with no real fear from the Hokage, the situation is grim indeed.' thought Ichigo. He looked at Sarutobi who gave him a small nod. It was time for the circus to begin.

The Uchiha smirked and channeled Chakra to his eyes. His Sharingan flared to life for all to see, and he looked every one of the councilors in the eyes.

"Hi. I am Uchiha Ichigo, the new Uchiha Clan Head. It's nice to meet you all." he declared cheerfully, all the while his Dojutsu was blazing in a sinister way.

For few seconds everyone was frozen in their seats, while staring in his eyes. Ichigo could see it in the faces of many civilians. Carefully laid plans were unraveled with one simple introduction. After all, he wasn't the kid they have been manipulating for years.

It lasted just an instant. If it wasn't for the Sharingan, Ichigo wouldn't have been able to notice it.

Danzo's mask cracked for a split second, before the bandaged man could school his face into a picture of indifference. In that moment Ichigo saw murder, loathing and a hint of fear. Then it was all gone as if it wasn't there.

The moment of stunned silence passed and pandemonium ensured.

"That man is an unknown factor! He could be a spy for all we know! He can't be on the council!"

"Uchiha Sasuke is the son of the previous clan head! He is the rightful Clan Head!"

Before it all could go out of control, Ichigo released a bit of killing intent, which silenced the civilians. As a bonus that stopped his rising headache in its tracks.

Hiruzen nodded at Ichigo in thanks. Before the Hokage could speak, Nara Shikamaru stretched as if awakening from a deep slumber.

"Hokage-sama, is there any reason why you made this man, Uchiha Ichigo, into a Clan Leader, besides the obvious?" he asked, meaning the Sharingan.

Sarutobi gave a small smile to his Jonin Commander.

"There is. This morning the results of a DNA test came through. Ichigo-san is the elder son of Uchiha Fugaku. That was more than enough for me to accept him as the Uchiha clan Leader, which in turn grants him a place on this Council."

Hyūga Hiashi's mind raced. Generally speaking, the Uchiha on the rise, however few they might be, was not in the best interest of his own. In the past they were rival clans, with their members often hating each other. However, this youngster was new to Konoha, possibly raised without the influence of all the old feuds which were usually taken for granted. 'This could be an opportunity. 'he thought.

If he could bury the hatched between their respective clans and acquire this Uchiha as an ally, Hiashi could rewrite the political climate in the village for generations to come. There was a fact that was not often mentioned. Simply put, prior to the massacre, the Uchihas were one of the wealthiest clans in Konoha, something not to be taken lightly. Now, with a clan leader, their assets could be unblocked, which in turn would greatly diminish the influence of the civilians, whose greatest claim to power was the financial control they got over Konoha, though their dealings with the Daimyo shouldn't be taken lightly either.

Hiashi turned to the newest Clan Head and gave him a polite bow.

"Ichigo-san, welcome to Konoha. It is good to see one of the great clans rising again."

Most of the people in the room gave Hiashi surprised glances. A lot of them felt poleaxed. That was the last thing anyone expected from the him. It was unheard of a Hyūga to give the smallest shred of respect to an Uchiha. To say that their clans were rivals, would be a charming understatement.

It was as sign that the times were changing.

"Thank you, Hiashi-san." Ichigo returned an equally respectful bow.

Masaki's lessons in good manners were paying up in spades.

"Considering that I am the center of attention anyway, I would like to ask a boon from you, Hokage-sama," Ichigo continued, after receiving a tiny nod. "I am not sure of the precise administrative process, so I thought to ask you. It's been years since my clan has been actually operated an I would want a complete audit of all Uchiha clan assets. Something I believe will be best done through your office."

Few of the civilians erupted in protest, but no one paid them much attention besides noting who exactly they were. More surprisingly, Danzo glared at Ichigo in such a way that if looks could kill (which sometimes they actually could in this world), the dimension traveler would be a bloody stain on the floor.

The reason for that was simple. The Uchiha supposedly "frozen" accounts, were one of the places used to siphon funds for his Ne division. As it was, he didn't expect it to be found for at least four or five years, which was the soonest when Sasuke could retake his place as Clan Leader and start pocking around. By that time it would have been irrelevant anyway.

However, now a big spanner was thrown in his plans. Danzo had to scramble in order to mitigate the possible consequences. It was a good thing that he had few civilian councilors lined up as convenient scrape goats.

It was too bad that the young Uchiha didn't go through the usual channels. Now he might have to be dealt with swiftly.

"That is highly irregular. The accounting as well as almost all financial matters falls under the purview of the Civilian council!" declared a pale faced man. "We will be the ones making any audits after the proper paperwork has been submitted."

Ichigo's calm facade broke and he unleashed a significant doze of killing intent. That man basically admitted that his clan accounts had been tampered with and someone needed time to fix the books and disappear any, and all evidence.

The civilians were crushed under invisible pressure, three of them fainting outright. A pair even voided their bowels.

Two men in ANBU uniforms materialized next to Ichigo. One had a tanto pressed to the Uchiha's jugular and the second one, a kunai at the back of the Substitute Shinigami's neck. They have acted on combination of instinct and training, preparing to neutralize an apparent threat to their master. The only reason the Root operatives didn't move in for the kill, was the location. They were aware that actually going through with it would be a disservice for Danzo.

The thought that they fucked up by revealing their presence, never passed through their minds. Danzo was threatened. That was all that counted.

All eyes in the chamber, expect the Hokage's, were on the two men in the garb of the special operations corps.

"Danzo! You will explain yourself!" Sarutobi ordered in a cold tone, which was seldom heard. It highlighted how serious and pissed off the old man was.

"Hokage-sama, I take it that those two aren't your men?" Ichigo asked calmly, as if there were no weapons poised to end his life.

"No." was the curt answer.

What followed would have been unthinkable for the old Ichigo. Oh, the boy from Karakura would have cheerfully kicked the asses of those two idiots. The Shinobi trained by Masaki, well he was another matter. In this world, he couldn't afford to show any weakness, especially right now. He was the new kid on the block so to speak. His position was inherently weak, and that was unacceptable.

Ichigo fell apart, replaced by a flock of angry crows. A Chakra enhanced punch struck the kunai armed Root member in the back of the head. That man was thrown over the table to land in a heap at the center of the room. His partner wasted no time and slashed Ichigo with his weapon. For a split second Danzo's agent saw a red line appearing on his target's chest and believed that he had succeeded. He even felt some resistance when his blade struck. Then the illusion of a stricken down Uchiha was replaced by a slashed stool, with which Ichigo had substituted.

The newly minted Clan Leader found himself at the back of his attacker and lunged forward. His hands blurred and his fingers struck various pressure points on the man's back. Thanks to his Sharingan it was a child's play.

The Ne operative fell to the ground, dead. That left his partner, who had shook off the brief spell of dizziness and was about to attack. Instead, the second Root man found himself braked by no less than four ANBU members, who had their weapons pressed at vital points of his body. Another two of Sarutobi's men were checking up the dead attacker.

The attention of the still conscious council members were divided between Ichigo and Danzo. Most of them were glaring at the crippled man.

Shimura's one eye was wide. His brainwashed followers had clearly overreacted, but that would hardly be believed. 'Damn fools!' he seethed. The actions of those damn fools could be perceived like an attack over the Shinobi Council... who all were clan leaders. He wasn't yet in position to face such an onslaught and survive. Not for few more years at any rate.

"Clearly my guards overreacted! You all know that I have only Konoha's best interests at hand! I would never raise my hand against the Council!" Danzo hurried to defend himself.

If he didn't know better, Ichigo might have believed him. The old cripple was a great actor. He wasn't a man who should be underestimated because of his crippling injuries.

"Danzo, tell me, what were your guards doing in the Council Chamber?" asked Ichigo. "I was left with the impression that only the Hokage's ANBU and the Council members could be present. Besides I find it curious that your men wore gear almost identical to that the ANBU have..." the Uchiha decided to twist the knife.

"Danzo, Root was ordered disbanded!" snapped Izunuka Tsume.

"They were. Those men are just my bodyguards who prefer to wear gear they are comfortable with. A crippled old man like myself need protection these days. Unfortunately I am no longer the Shinobi I used to be. I still have a lot of enemies, who would love nothing more than seeing me gutted."

The worst thing was that everything Danzo said was true. Mostly.

"Enough!" the Hokage's raised voice shut up the crowd. "The audit of the Uchiha properties will be handled through my office. Ichigo-san will be tested tomorrow to determine his Shinobi rank. ANBU will investigate Shimura's bodyguards. That is all."

'That went better than expected, those two idiots notwithstanding. Even better, no one mentioned the damn CRA. '

Before he was able to exit the Council Chambers, Ichigo got to meet the various Clan heads who congratulated him for his elevation in statute. Most of them were reserved, waiting to see his real skills during the test tomorrow.

However, there were two notable exceptions. They were Tsume and Hiashi. The matriarch of the Izunuka clan wanted to warn him that he had made an enemy in the face of Danzo and should be careful. It wasn't something he hadn't figured out himself, but it was appreciated nonetheless.

The surprising part was Hiashi, who acted friendly. If the reactions of the other Shinobi were anything to go by, that was unusual.

Ichigo recalled few stories by his mother about some supposed bad blood between the Uchihas and Hyūga, and wondered if Hiashi was trying to mend the fences between them. With him having no part in those messes, it was finally possible. Either that or Hiashi planed to get close to him and screw him over at a later date. You got to love politics...

Well, only time could tell. Right now, Ichigo had some more present concerns. He had to prepare for the test tomorrow. One of the main things was getting some decent equipment. But first he was going to check with the Hokage and see if something else was requested from him.

As it turned out, Sarutobi did request his presence. Ichigo needed to fill up some forms for the audit to go through. When that was done, Ichigo had to resolve the issue with not having much money on himself.

"Hokage-sama, can I use one of the Uchiha accounts to pay for equipment? I'm not exactly flush with funds right now."

"Yes. Now as a Clan Head, at least few accounts should be at your disposal, until the audit is finished." Hiruzen scratched few lines on an empty blank and handed it to Ichigo. "Just go to the Shinobi bank and you'll be set up."

"Thank you. Anything special I'll need for tomorrow?"

"It will be a demonstration fight. I would appreciate if you and your opponent try not to kill and maim each other."

"Understood, Hokage-sama."

When Ichigo turned to leave, he saw the Hokage make a couple of clones to help with the paperwork. Speaking about it, very soon he would have to deal with the damn thing too.

That particular ordeal started with the bank, where he was stuck for couple of hours until everything could be straightened out. When all was said and done, Ichigo had access to two accounts. One for the expenses as a Shinobi, which included whatever his brother would need for his remaining time in the academy and another to pay for their day to day expenses.

Finally, when everything was cleared up, he withdrewew a substantial amount of Ryo and went shopping. He wasn't about to entrust his life on whatever was left in the Uchiha armories, mainly because he suspected that a lot if not all of that equipment hadn't seen a decent maintenance since the massacre.

The only thing that really disturbed him was one simple fact. Few hours ago he had killed another man... and felt nothing. Ever since he arrived in the Land of Fire, Ichigo had the blood of four men on his hands yet he still didn't feel even a pang of regret.

**=CE=**

**Part 3**

**Market District, Konoha**

Once he had finished with the bank, Ichigo headed shopping. His first stop were the various dealers selling armor. His encounter with that Shinigami, Byuakuya, had been a wake up call. The thin Soul Reaper uniform he had been wearing offered next to no protection. For all he knew, armor could be useless when dealing with spiritual being, however his current situation was different. Ichigo was dealing with humans.

That's why he believed that a light, tough set of armor could be a lifesaver.

In the first two shops he entered, Ichigo didn't find anything of interest. Something told him that he'll be seeing a lot of heavy duty combat in the future, so he wanted suitable equipment. What he found for sale instead was good for nothing better than deflecting light shrapnel. According to the second shopkeeper, the more sturdier armor had fallen out of favor after the end of the last Shinobi Great war. At least he got the direction to a higher end shop, where he might find something more suitable.

When he reached that establishment, Ichigo didn't see anything particularly interesting, armor-wise. At least at first. That was before his eyes reached a mannequin in half hidden in the far corner of the shop.

From what he knew, that armor wasn't something that most modern ninja would consider wearing into battle. The suit had a futuristic look. It was like something he would expect to be worn by the future soldiers back on Earth. On first look, the it appeared to be a mock up for a light power armor. The dark material that was the base for the suit resembled Kevlar. Over it were placed smooth, body hugging leg and arm protectors. The piece which was supposed to cover the torso was covered by interlinked plates.

While that setup wasn't going to offer the best possible protection, it looked like it wont constrict the agility of the wearer too much. If it was light enough, it could be a pretty useful tool to have.

What got him was the look of the armor. It resembled the bastard child of various fictional power armors he had seen. It was a bit out of place in the Shinobi world. He wondered how useful it would be on a Shinobi dominated battlefield.

"Where did you get it?" he asked of the shopkeeper, who was studying the Uchiha with interest.

The said man, was a grizzled Shinobi, who was a veteran from the last two Ninja wars. His answer was quite interesting.

"It was near the end of the Third Great War. I was on a team sent to raid deep behind the enemy lines. We were in the Land of Snow, which as you probably know, even now is the most technologically advanced country in the world."

"Yeah, I've heard about it." Ichigo answered absent-mindedly

It wasn't like Masaki would have left him slack on any subject.

"At the time, those wankers were the greatest weapon supplier to our enemies. Further, their equipment was the best any side could get their hands on," for a moment the old man's eyes became distant, as he was reliving a piece of his past. "We were supposed to hit all the weapon depots in the region as well as a pair of logistics centers. At first all went according to plan..." the man trailed off.

Ichigo shook his head. He knew where that was going.

"That never lasts." he commiserated and received a rueful smile in answer.

"Not in this world anyway. Attacking our first targets was resounding success. An arms depot and a brand new trains station went up in flames, while we got out with only few lightly wounded," the retired Shinobi took a deep breath, before continuing. "Our third target wasn't another depot as the Intel pukes led us to believe. We ran straight into the defenses of an R&amp;D center, which was devoted to armor research. When all is said and done, we got lucky."

"You can never overstate the part it has in a Shinobi live, no matter how much some try to deny it. Sometimes its down to pure luck, despite all the training and skill a Shinobi has." added Ichigo.

"Too true. Where was I? Ah. The main defense of the place was secrecy and the fact that there was an outpost nearby. We managed to overwhelm the center's guards, before the enemy reinforcements hit our left flank. It was a bloody maelstrom from that moment on. Waves of kunai and Jutsu raining from everywhere, then another group on enemies hit us,"he shook his head in wonder. "Yet, somehow we prevailed. When the dust settled, two thirds of our detachment were dead and all the rest were more or less wounded. I somehow found myself deep into the complex, surrounded by dead shinobi and researchers. I used that opportunity to retrieve what intelligence I could find from the lab, while planting explosive notes on everything that looked remotely useful. That's how I found this beauty. It's supposed to be a prototype of a Chakra armor, however it was never finished."

"How so?" asked Ichigo.

"It is supposed to use the wearer Chakra to enhance his speed and strength, while providing increased protection against elemental attacks. As it is right now, it is only a fine suit of armor that is too cumbersome to use without the enhancements it is supposed to grant its user. However that is the part that wasn't finished. To add insult to injury, by the time my detachment hooked up with friendly forces, the war was over. The Intel pukes as well as our R&amp;D department wrote it off as interesting, but ultimately useless so they let me keep it."

"Its good to know. I want to try it on."

"Suit yourself."

Unfortunately it wasn't a good fit for him. Despite that, Ichigo wondered if he could find someone who could finish it up and rework it so he could wear it. It wasn't like he lacked the resources for such an en devour. So he decided to buy it anyway.

He certainly now possessed enough money to fund his own R&amp;D program, but that would wait until the various business that the Uchiha clan was owning and closed after the massacre were up and running again.

In the end, Ichigo ended up buying a chain-mesh armor, with a plate light plate chest protector. To that he added, arm and leg guards as well as a pair of armored gloves which didn't constrict the movement of his fingers. It was pretty expensive, but it was worth it.

His outfit was complete by black pants, which were made of material tough enough to resist shrapnel. They had a lot of pockets too, which was a bonus.

His armor shopping was complete by two pairs of armored and comfortable boots. As a Shinobi he would be doing a lot of running around. Once all that was done, he sealed his equipment in a pair of storage scrolls and headed towards a nearby weapon shop, which had a wide selection of important goods.

Ichigo was browsing the wares, when the orange menace who had sparred with his brother entered the shop. The kid was unmistakable with that eye-searing outfit of his. The proprietor's reaction surprised Ichigo.

"Out demon spawn!" sneered the shop owner the moment he laid his eyes on Naruto.

The kid flinched at those words and bolted. Ichigo had to suppress the desire to beat up the idiot so he won't leave the hospital for months and left after Naruto. A small part of his mind wondered how long it would be before his protecting people thing got him in serious trouble.

The Uchiha easily caught up to the boy.

"Hey, kid. You are one of Sasuke's classmates, right?" asked Ichigo, surprising Uzumaki.

"Oi!" exclaimed Naruto and jumped nearly a meter in the air. A moment later, he tried to run for it but was stopped by a firm, but gentle hand which caught his shoulder.

The boy's antics nearly brought a small smile to his face.

"Calm down, kid. Care to tell me what was that about?" Ichigo asked with a frown on his face.

He could sense his ANBU watchers tensing the moment he went after Naruto.

Uzumaki looked at the young man with huge eyes. He was expecting someone to start screaming or cursing him, not calm questions. Instead it was his turn to frown. That was the man who visited Sasuke, claiming to be his brother. It was a mystery! To make it more interesting, Sasuke refused to comment on the topic despite everyone asking him about it!

"Most shopkeepers hate me," mumbled Naruto. "Often they don't let me buy anything from their shops and chase me out instead."

"Hn. Are you sure it's not because all the orange?" quipped Ichigo.

It was surreal. On one hand those words were flowed from his mouth naturally. It was something that he said without thinking as an attempt to put the kid on ease. Yet, this wasn't the way the Ichigo from Karakura would talk. It was familiar and strange at the same time.

"Hey! Orange is cool! It's my favorite color!" exclaimed Naruto.

The Substitute Shinigami looked at the kid critically, wondering if the boy was color blind or something.

"You want to be a Ninja, right Naruto-kun?"

"Yes! I'll be just as the Yondaime! And I'll be the next Hokage, dattebayo!" - Naruto started bouncing in excitement.

"Not, with that outfit you won't. It screams 'Kill me'! You'll have to dress properly, not as a bloody clown."

The light in Naruto's eyes diminished. He lowered his head and sniffed.

"These are the only clothes, which they sell me at a price I can afford. Besides they are Orange! What's wrong with Orange?" pouted the demon container.

'Da fuck?' Ichigo thought. The brat should be paid to wear those... things, not the other way around. This village was going down the drain. 'Note to self, make contingency plans to grab whoever sane remains and run for the hills, if everything goes to hell.'

Ichigo thought for few seconds.

"ANBU-san, could you recommend a weapons shop, where we can get some decent outfit for the kid too?"

"Not far from here is a weapons shop, which also deals with general equipment. It's owned by ex shinobi who shouldn't have any problem with Naruto. Just go down the street and take the second turn on the right. You can't miss it." a neutral voice could be heard by nearby shadow.

Naruto turned that way, but could see no one there.

"Come with me. I believe that the shopkeepers won't try something dumb with me and the ANBU around."

"But.."

"On the double, trooper!"

**=CE=**

"**Zaeed's Arms", Konoha**

The shop they were looking at took most of the first floor of a three stores building. It had a huge selection of weapons of all kinds. One wall was set up for standard Shinobi equipment.

The shop was minded by a young genin. She was thirteen, fourteen at best. The first thing Ichigo noticed was her brown hair, which she wore in Chinese style buns, or whatever they were called here. Her visible outfit consisted by a long sleeved green blouse which appeared to be made from the same stuff used for regular ninja clothing. He gave her a bonus points, her clothes would make passable camouflage in the forest prevalent in the Land of Fire.

"Hi! I'm Tenten! How can I help you? What are you looking for?" she bubbled cheerfully. She obviously had too much unspent energy.

Naruto stood frozen, staring at the girl. No glares, or attempt to throw him out. She was treating him like an ordinary customer! Aside from the Ichiraku's that was a very rare occurrence.

"I'm here for the sharp, pointy stuff, Tenten-san." declared Ichigo. He waved at the still stunned Naruto. "And this fella, needs some clothes befitting a Shinobi. We can't have our next Hokage blinding the populace."

"Hey!" Naruto shouted with indignation. Ichigo's words had gotten him over his shock.

Tenten giggled at their antics and waved at the stands.

"Please help yourselves. I'll answer any questions you have."

"I need a sword. Straight, single edged. About meter and a half at most." Ichigo said in serious tone.

The genin nodded and waved at one of the stands near the far wall of the room.

"There are our best swords. However they aren't of as good quality as our shorter blades. Most Konoha Shinobi aren't interested in full length swords. The few sword masters we have, had to seek a custom work for their needs."

"Hmm. It's a sad trend. However I'm fond of swords. I just feel incomplete without a decent blade in my hands." Ichigo rambled on.  
Meanwhile, Naruto enjoyed the near unique, in his opinion, opportunity to brows high quality Shinobi equipment. The best thing was that there was no one to harass him.

Naruto choose a pair of black jumpsuits, not too different from what he usually wore. After checking the prices, he also grabbed a set of brand new kunai, which was why he was out shopping when he met Ichigo.

With his wares in hand, Naruto went to the counter, clutching his wallet, Mr. Frog. It hat the unique distinction of being a present. It was one of the very few he had ever received. Too bad that he never knew who gave them to him.

Tenten went back behind the counter and checked Naruto's purchases.

"That's three hundred and fifty Ryo. Is that all? Would you want a bag or a sealing scroll to carry them?"

Despite seeing the supposed prices on the goods, Naruto was stunned. Almost everyone else was making him pay at least double!

"Hey! Are you all right?" Tenten asked him with a concern in her voice.

Ichigo choose that moment to come back to the front of the store. He had heard what happened.

"If what I saw earlier wasn't an isolated accident, I thing that he is either chased out of shops or regularly overpriced. I guess you are one of the few people who treated him fairly and he is in shock."

"Why? He is just a kid, who isn't out of the academy yet!" exclaimed Tenten.

"Bunch of damn fools!" someone hissed, causing Tenten to fall in a defensive stance and look around.

"No worries. It's just one of my ANBU minders." reassured her Ichigo. "What is with the way those idiots treat the kid?" asked Ichigo, while looking at an empty part of the shop.

"You'll have to ask Hokage-sama, Uchiha-san."

"Jiji said that its too early for me to know." mumbled Naruto.

"The reason is that a lot of people in Konoha are bloody idiots." a gravel new voice came from the back of the shop. It belonged to a man in his mid fifties. He had short white hair, in tone with his blind right eye. An ugly scar, centered on his right temple was disfiguring that side of his face. He was wearing a wide, blacksmith's apron over a gray blouse.

"Indeed."

The old man critically looked over Ichigo.

"I haven't seen you yonder, but you seem awfully familiar." he mused."

"I arrived in Konoha yesterday. It's probably family resemblance you see. I am Uchiha Ichigo. Nice to meet you."

"Ah. The new Clan Head."

"So the rumor mill finally caught up with me, eh?"

"As you know, that was inevitable. I hear you made quite the impression with the council. Usually those meetings go without someone dying. I'm Zaeed Massani, by the way. Uchiha-san." the old man introduced himself.

"They aren't my biggest fans." Ichigo's lips twitched upwards as he spoke. He looked at the man who could only be a retired Shinobi or Samurai. "Tell me Zaeed-san, do you make custom blades?"

"That I do. What do you need?"

"Well, lets see..." Ichigo proceeded to tell the blacksmith what he needed done.

"You sound like someone who knows his swords. I can have it ready by the end of the month. Until then, you'll have to use something of the standard fare.

"Fair enough." Ichigo agreed.

The Uchiha Clan Leader looked at Naruto who had been following the conversation with interest.

"Well, its good to know that there are at least few decent people around here. You probably should run along, Naruto-kun. I bet that you have some homework and training to do."

**=CE=**

**Part 4**

**Uchiha Compound, Konoha**

Ichigo surveyed his domain. While the clan grounds were cleaned up from all signs of the massacre, the buildings had an un-kept appearance, complete with flaking paint and a few cracked windows. Here and there could be seen tuffs of grass, which were growing unchecked.

When you add the damn wall surrounding the compound, the place looked like a damned prison. He'll have to do something about that. First, though it was time to check on his brother. Ichigo wandered around for about fifteen minutes, before finding Sasuke. The kid was at the back of the compound in one of the few private training grounds. He was on the ground panting, obviously exhausted from training.

"Sasuke! How was your day?" Ichigo asked all too cheerfully.

The younger Uchiha glared at his so called brother, whose eyes sparkled with amusement.

"Fan girls!" spat Sasuke. "Ever since you came, I couldn't get away from them! Today they were worse than ever!" The boy pointed an accusing finger as Ichigo. "It's all your fault!"

Ichigo cringed, nodding in sympathy. Those were a problem even in Karakura, at least until they lost interest in him. It wasn't like he could beat them up like the local gangsters, damn it!

"I feel for you, kid. Those are troublesome creatures. You, my young apprentice, will need some more training in order to evade that evil menace!" Ichigo somehow managed to say his line with a straight face. He sniffed in the direction of his brother. "However, that's for tomorrow. First, you need a bath. Now."

Sasuke grumbled, but obeyed. He was exhausted.

While his brother was making himself presentable, Ichigo had unwrapped his purchases. He stowed most of them in one of the free rooms in the building where his Sasuke was living. By this time his little brother was taken a shower and came out of his room, Ichigo had taken command over the kitchen and was busy fixing up dinner.

Cooking was a vital skill he had to learn while he was rather young. The less said for Goat Chin's attempts of fixing food, the better.

Soon enough, Sasuke entered the kitchen. He was following his nose which had informed him that something smelling tasty was being cooked.

"Sasuke-kun, we can talk here. I've checked for and removed few listening seals and have a couple of clones patrolling. Besides there are at least few ANBU hanging around. I'm rather sure that they would like to chat with any uninvited guests." Ichigo told his brother while cutting vegetables on the kitchen's counter. Behind him, could be heard the sound of frying chicken. "As I said earlier, some of my story is not for public consumption. At least not yet."

Sasuke looked at the older Uchiha with unreadable expression, before grabbing a kitchen knife and joining him in cutting down the vegetables. He was rather hungry, and it appeared that he was about to get some answers.

"I think you owe me an explanation." stated Sasuke, while he busied his hands with slaughtering onion.

Ichigo glanced at his brother, noticing the sure way he was gripping the knife handle and the speed and precision with which he was cutting the vegetables.

"A question for a question, all right? You go first."

Sasuke stopped for a moment, while thinking what to ask.

"You are obviously an Uchiha. Your Sharingan kind of confirms it. You say you are my brother. How did that happen?" Sasuke asked, showing a bit of maturity.

"Well, this falls under the umbrella of clan business. No need to show all of our dirty laundry for the whole village to see." Ichigo started. If Sasuke was surprised by his choice of words, he didn't show it. "You see, father, and yes I'm talking about Fugaku, met my mother eighteen, almost nineteen years ago. I hope I won't have to explain the whole 'bees and birdies' thing to you? Right?" Ichigo almost pleaded.

He was forced to have this conversation with his sisters, not trusting Isshin with the topic. Ichigo hoped that he won't have to repeat that particular conversation.

"Hn. No we covered that in the academy." stammered Sasuke. He frowned and glanced at Ichigo. "Wait a minute! Dad married mother seventeen years ago!" he exclaimed.

"Ah. That's great on both counts." said Ichigo. It was good to know that Fugaku might not have cheated on either Masaki or Sasuke's mum. "As you can guess, my mother and our father were together, and nine months later I came in like an unanticipated surprise. If you do the math, you'll find out that I'm about I was conceived about a year before Itachi. Going by what I was told, that would have made me the presumptive clan heir, despite the fact that my mother and Fugaku weren't married. Do I need to tell you what a political mess within the clan that would have caused?"

Sasuke pondered that a bit and shook his head. He had read enough of the Uchiha history to understand that it would have been very bad for all concerned.

"As a result I was raised and trained by my mother, Masaki, who was a retired Kunochi. Fugaku visited us few times while I was a small kids, but I never learned his family name. That happened couple of years ago, when I was attacked by a bunch of bandits who had a missing nin with them. Then I awakened my Sharingan I at least learned that I was a part of the clan.

Ichigo watched Sasuke carefully. He could see anger and then resignation flashing on the kid's face, when he learned how his new brother came to be. At least he didn't have to struggle with the thought that their father was a cheating bastard. Probably.

'Damn you Itachi! I just thought of Fugaku as if he was my father! Damn mind tricks!' Ichigo felt a wave of anger and indignation washing over him, before he could subdue his emotions.

"My turn. Any friend at the academy?"

Sasuke had to think long and hard for an answer. While he was doing that, Ichigo took the cut vegetables and added them to the chicken, and started stirring the mixture.

"Hn. Not really. Once I might have considered the Dobe as such, but he's just a loud idiot."

"So no girlfriends?" asked Ichigo.

"Hey! It's my turn." grumbled Sasuke.

"I just wanted clarification. Ask away."

"They are all fangirls! The only one that isn't like that never speaks with me and she's constantly fainting."

"Do you want to elaborate? Who is this Dobe and the mysterious girl?" Ichigo smirked.

"Naruto. You saw me kick his ass!" Sasuke said with pride.

"It was well done take-down, I'll gladly grant you that. However you must take into account that he obviously isn't trained adequately. Any idea why is that? He's in your class after all. Didn't he receive the same instructions?"

Sasuke was torn between exuberance at the praise and anger, because Ichigo had simultaneously diminished his accomplishment.

"Brother, you did well. Your technique and timing were good. I don't mean to belittle your victory. I believe that you'll be able to best an opponent who has similar training as yourself. But you should consider why your classmate isn't trained to same level. Sasuke, you will be a shinobi in just a few months. You should be able to notice such things and reach correct conclusion." Ichigo said.

"Hn." - Sasuke gave his trademarked reply, deep in thought.

"Naruto is your class mate. A future Konoha shinobi, and one day, sooner than you think, your life may depend on his actions. So when you look it from this angle, tell me what you think. Why doesn't he have even the basic taijutsu proficiency?"

Ichigo left his brother deep in thought and focused his attention on the cooking. He added the rest of the spices, a bit of wine and left the chicken and vegetables to stew.

As his big brother was preparing the diner, Sasuke was reflecting on his days in the academy. Part of him had found it natural that the Dobe was often kicked out of class. However, then he thought about the taijutsu lessons and was startled what he recalled. The instructor was teaching Naruto wrong! But why? And who else was sabotaged? He gulped. Were his achievements in the academy questionable too?

"He's still a Dobe. But when I think about it, it's obvious. I do not know why, but his training being sabotaged. And if one students progress is tampered with..." Sasuke trailed off.

"You are wondering if he was the only one to be messed up with. You are fearing that you are either being sabotaged too, or that all the praise given to you are overstating your abilities." Ichigo finished the thought. "Well, the Hokage is looking into it, and Ibiki and co, will soon have new playmates. As far as you are concerned, I'll make sure that you are not only ready for being Shinobi, but also graduate with honors. Continuing that train of thought, do you know how the genin teams are formed?" Ichigo asked, after a stray bit of information from the memories of Itachi had flashed through his mind.

Sasuke shook his head.

"From what my mother explained, usually, the top dog, gets paired with the best Kunochi and the dead last." Ichigo smirked, enjoying the look of dawning horror which appeared on his brother's face.

Sasuke whimpered and started bashing his head on the corner.

"The Dobe!" Smash! "Sakura!" smash, "The pink Banshee!" smash.

Ichigo's grimaced.

"Is she the president of your fan-club?" He asked, fearing the answer.

The dreaded answer came: smash, "Queen...", two more head bashes, "fan-girl..."

"I feel for you, brother. We may be able to straighten up Naruto, but the fan-girls..."

"Hn, the Dobe will fail again. If have any luck left. He couldn't pass the last two times. Naruto can't make a Bushin to save his life."

"Hm, really?" Ichigo wondered aloud. "We'll see about that."

They dined, speaking about what Sasuke had learned in the academy. In Ichigo's opinion it was far from enough.

**=CE=**

Next morning, Sasuke awoke from a strange dream. He stretched and went to the bathroom, pondering what it meant. He had dreamed that he had another brother – a relative who Itachi didn't kill. That he won't be alone anymore.

He should have known it was a childish dream. The morose thoughts of the young Uchiha were interrupted by a loud crash and indignant girlish squeal. Sasuke paled. That sounded like Ino! He looked around for a suitable hiding place. The door of his bedroom was suddenly opened, and a young man entered.

"Sasuke! Great, you are up! Breakfast's ready!"

Sasuke looked at his Ichigo with wide eyes. It wasn't a dream! Ichigo was real! The younger sibling released a breath, he did not know, he was holding.

"Aaarh!" - Another scream was heard, taking Sasuke's attention.

"What, in Kami's name is happening here?!" he exclaimed.

Ichigo chuckled evilly:

"After last night conversation, I decided that installing some harmless defenses against impudent fangirls would be a prudent thing to do. Even the ANBU apparently agreed." Ichigo led his little brother to see what was caught in the traps.

On the first floor they found Ino, stuck halfway through an open window. She was cocooned by ninja wire. The fangirl looked at the smirking Ichigo and paled.

The clan head, lead the way to the back of the building, where they found Naruto, hanging from the ceiling, his legs bound by a loop. The attempt of the Uzumaki to free himself were futile. At least the kid was wearing one of his new track suits, and was no longer an eyesore. On the floor below Naruto, was a packet of itching powder.

Ichigo smirked.

"We caught ourselves a prankster, eh?"

"Dobe."

"Teme." The kids greeted each other.

Ichigo chuckled at the display. He pocketed the powder before releasing Naruto.

"There are pancakes in the kitchen, help yourselves. I'll be along shortly."

While Sasuke reluctantly showed a grumbling Naruto the way, Ichigo disappeared. Soon they heard and indignant shriek from Ino. Ichigo returned moment's later, empty packet in hand.

"That will hopefully teach her some manners."

Sasuke and Naruto looked at each other and snickered at the thought of their classmate covered by the powder.

"Dive in." Ichigo motioned at the steaming pancakes.

He went deeper into the kitchen and took a cup of tea. The breakfast was apparently good, if the speed with which it was wolfed was any indicator. He did not miss the glares the children were throwing at each other. 'That will take some work."

"Naruto, I hear that you can do with some more training. And there is that little problem with the clones..."

At the mention of training, the hyperactive blonde started bouncing in his seat, but when he heard "clones", a sudden sense of gloom surrounded the trio. You could almost see a black cloud over Naruto's head.

"Don't worry. I'm sure we can deal with all that before the exams. If you don't try prancing us again."

The Uzumaki perked at that. Someone was finally willing to teach him! Too bad that he would have to redirect his pranks to someone else...

They were interrupted by the arrival of Cat. If she was surprised by seeing Naruto having a breakfast with the Uchihas, she hid it well.

"Uchiha-san, the Hokage requests you presence in an hour. I'll be escorting you there."

"Well, I guess, that is all for this morning kids. Good luck at school." Ichigo finished his tea and went to prepare, ignoring the bickering children.

After a fast shower, Ichigo started outfitting himself for the impending combat.

**=CE=**

**Konoha's Stadium**

Sasuke was in the stands, along with the rest of his class. This morning, the classes were canceled so the prospective genin could see how a Shinobi fought.

He had been a bit jealous, when his brother suggested to train Naruto, but soon calmed down. He still scoffed at the thought that his life may depend on the Dobe, but intellectually knew it was a distinct possibility.

He had even accepted Ichigo as a clan head, after few minutes of angry muttering, but for once common sense had prevailed. After all, it will be at least four more years until Sasuke could hold the position.

However, Ichigo wasn't out of the hot water. Sasuke's big brother had somehow failed to mention that he'll have his shinobi examination today. For all of Konoha to see, too.

The result was predictable. Sasuke had been bombarded with questions he had no answer for, not to mention that his fan-girls were bloodthirstier than usual.

The announcer's voice boomed, silencing the crowd. He was using Iruka's patented Big Head Jutsu. The crowds exploded. The villagers were eager to see their new Uchiha.

"We are here today to determine the abilities and shinobi rank of Uchiha Ichigo, Clan Head of the Uchiha clan. The combat will be until unconsciousness, yield or to be stopped by the referee. Uchiha-san, come to the arena." thundered the announcer's voice.

Ichigo's armored form shunshined in the middle of the arena, next to the ANBU proctor. The Uchiha's opponent appeared in a swirl of leaves. Ichigo was looking at the hunched form of a white haired cyclops, who had his face buried in an orange book.

"Hatake Kakashi!" this time the thunder was caused by the Hokage's irate voice.

"Huh, what?!" - exclaimed the ex ANBU captain. Kakashi had the distant feeling that this time he had went a bit too far.

"BEGIN!" - ordered the Hokage.


	3. Chapter 3 v2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto, they belong to their respective owners. I make no money from this story.**

'Bankai!' - thought  
"Bankai!" - speech  
_"Bankai!"_\- Zanpakuto/demon speech

**Cursed Eyes**

**=CE=**

**Chapter 3**

**Part 1**

**Konoha's Stadium**

Kakashi examined the newcomer he was supposed to test. There was something in the Uchiha, perhaps it was the stance or the look in his eyes. He reminded him of Itachi. Of course, that shouldn't be too big a surprise. They were half-brothers after all.

He moved his head protector, revealing a fully mature Sharingan in his hidden eye. The ex-ANBU hands blurred. Kakashi replaced his precious book with a kunai and moved faster than a civilian or a genin could hope to follow. He charged forward, with a weapon poised to strike.

The attack was over before most of the spectators could comprehend that it truly began. Kakashi's strike was stopped by an iron grip which halted his kunai millimeters from Ichigo's Adam's Apple.

The Copy ninja eye-smiled and started glowing.

"All to easy." he beamed at his opponent.

Ichigo answered with a smirk. His body was pierced by what appeared to be rays of light.

"This gives a brand new meaning to MAD." muttered the Uchiha moment before the two clones blew up.

The arena was lit up by the dual flashes of explosions. Thunder and overpressure wave slammed at the barrier protecting the spectators.

In the stands, Sasuke and his classmates were staring open mouthed at the casual display of power. Below them, the dust cleared, blown away by a wall of compressed air. It was a mere backslash of a Futon: Daitoppa (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough). The spectators could see Ichigo and Kakashi staring at each other, standing on the opposite edges of the meter deep crater created by their opening gambit.

"Sharingan Kakashi," The Uchiha mussed, "Not an opponent to be taken lightly." he declared, before his body dissolved into a flock of crows.

The black birds "Kawed", flying to the sky. Once the birds were over the arena, their numbers split and they dive bombed Kakashi. The feathery projectiles hit the ground with a muffled "thump", forming a circle around Hatake. From the impact points stood up thirty identical clones of Ichigo. The Doppelgangers drew their swords and pointed them at Kakashi. The clones smiled and turned into separate flock of ravens each. The sound of hundreds clapping wings drowning everything else.

An avalanche of feathery arrows shot at the former ANBU, covering the arena with shadows. Kakashi did not react, his Sharingan allowing him to see through the genjutsu. The raven swarm's only effect on him was to blur the surrounding area, making it harder to look for the real Ichigo.

The first birds passed through the Konoha shinobi harmlessly, just as their creator had intended. Few different ravens were hidden in the flocks of their illusionary brethren. They were Chakra constructs, with just enough mass to permit a Kawarimi no Jutsu (Change of Body Technique).

When his impromptu familiars were in place, Ichigo acted.

He flashed through the swarm in a rapid series of substitutions. Ichigo appeared for split second, long enough to throw a handful of kunai, before swapping himself with another of his familiars.

Kakashi was startled by this tactic. His Sharingan allowed him to see exactly what his opponent was doing. To his chagrin, the white haired Shinobi found out that he had lost the initiative in this fight. To add insult to injury, what Ichigo was doing was a bastardized imitation of Minato's Hirashin.

The two techniques didn't have much in common besides their apparent effect, however what Ichigo was doing was effective nonetheless. It also showed the caliber of his opponent. The novel and deadly use of an "E" ranked technique was nothing to sneer at. That attack also revealed something else about the Uchiha. He had the needed incredible control and precision to pull it off.

The way Ichigo was flashing around his opponent, always facing him and attacking was uncanny. The never ending rain of kunai and shuriken, was a deadly threat that had to be either evaded or deflected.

Kakashi twisted and weaved through the steel rain, which was made easier by the enhanced perception granted by his Sharingan eye. The copycat was doing his best to deflect the projectiles he couldn't evade, but there were too much of them. Inevitably, few made it through his defenses.

To make things worse for Kakashi, Ichigo's genjutsu was distorting his vision a bit. Just enough, that when combined with the relentless attack he couldn't swap himself with an object outside the illusion's radius. The genjutsu acted as a penetration aid too. Few projectiles that would have been deflected otherwise, slipped through Kakashi's last ditch defenses and found their way to his body.

A minute later, when the onslaught finally ended, Hatake was still on his feet. He spouted more than a dozen slashed all over his body, with a double of that amount of bruises from projectiles that failed to penetrate his light armor.

At last, the white haired Cyclops found himself face to face with the real Ichigo who was panting. He had underestimated how much a hundred or so replacements in such a short span of time would strain his body. Despite that he smirked at his opponent.

Ichigo had a reason to be in high spirits. While his technique was unable to take out someone of Kakashi's caliber, it would be a murder against a group of lesser opponents.

The Uchiha Clan Leader made a mental note to add explosive tags to his kunai for the next time he used this attack.

"That was impressive." congratulated Kakashi.

The Jonin and some of the Chunin in the audience had to agree. The stunt pulled by the Uchiha could conceivably decimate a small army.

"Thanks. But you just had to remain standing, didn't you? And here I was hoping to end my day earlier." Ichigo's smirk almost became a smile.

The eyes of the two Sharingan users met and they charged each other, fast enough to be little more than a blur to a casual observer. Ichigo had a long sword in hand, which was intercepted by a kunai wielded by Kakashi. The blades met in a shower of sparks.

Ichigo was using the longer reach of his weapon to keep his more experienced opponent at a hand's reach. In the next few moments, the opponents fought to a standstill amidst the flashes of two dancing blades.

It couldn't last. Kakashi used the kunai in his left hand to turn Ichigo's sword to the side. He rushed in the opening in his opponent's guard and his right hand struck like a hungry viper. He aimed at Ichigo's shoulder, in a point where the small blade could incapacitate the Uchiha's arm with a single strike.

The weapon impacted Ichigo's armor with a scream of tortured metal. The Substitute Shinigami had turned at the last moment, so the blade struck the light plate protecting his chest. The armor was dented, but held. The kunai slid over it, leaving a deep gorge behind.

Ichigo wasted no time in returning the favor and bashed Kakashi in the face with the pommel of his sword. Both heard the sound of cracking bone before the Jonin stumbled a step backwards.

Instead of trying to regain his momentum, Kakashi jumped back, leaving his kunai to fall to the ground. His fingers were a blur of hand-signs.

"Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu! (Fire Style – Art of the Phoenix Flower, the Touch-me-not)" a dozen football sized fireballs shot from the hands of the shinobi aimed at Ichigo.

The Uchiha weaved between the first half of the fiery missiles, when large shuriken puffed into existence in the hearths of the remaining fire spheres. Ichigo's eyes widened and he desperately moved his sword to intercept the nearest weapon. He deflected that one, stepped aside from a second and blocked third with his blade.

The fourth slashed his left biceps, but the last pair screaming at him, too close to evade or intercept. In the last moment Ichigo used Kawarimi to replace himself with a rock blown away by the explosions which started the battle. The shurikens struck it with enough force to break it in pieces.

The clan leader had no time to catch his breath, because he had to evade a flight of kunai with attached live explosive notes. Ichigo dived to the right, leaving the improvised rockets to pass over him. They exploded behind Ichigo to no ill effect.

The Uchiha retaliated with a one of his Clan's trademark fire Jutsu's.

"Katon: Karyu Endan! (Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!)" Ichigo exhaled a stream of fire, forcing the Kakashi to hastily jump away.

"Suiton: Teppōdama! (Water Release: Gunshot) " answered Kakashi, somehow spitting trio of water bullets without revealing his face.

Ichigo evaded two of them, but he was not fast enough to get away from the third, which grazed his chest and tore away his tactical vest and the plate protecting his torso. Ichigo was thrown back by the force of the glancing blow and hit the wall of the arena.

He lost his sword, which flew away from his hand. Before Kakashi could take advantage of the partially successful attack, the Uchiha body flickered to the other side of the stadium, thus gaining some breathing room.

The dimension traveler had to regain the initiative. Showing off a bit wouldn't hurt either. Ichigo concentrated, kneading Chakra within his lungs. It was the first time he was going to use one of his favorite jutsu at full power.

"Katon: Karyu Endan!(Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!)" This time, the flames he exhaled were not the thin stream of a flamethrower.

Instead the fire condensed in front of the caster, forming a great fiery dragon. The reptile made of roaring flames, shot forward, elongating as it was moving. Its wings were spread wide, creating a three-pronged attack at the area it hit.

Half of the arena was engulfed by searing flames. The cobblestones covering its floor became a half-melted lumps of rock, which glowed white.

The crowd was left gasping at the display. The heat was so intense, that the people on the front seats had to back away despite the barrier protecting them.

Sasuke was concerned when it looked like his brother was losing, but now the younger Uchiha was watching the spectacle with amazement. While his power-hungry part was still present and tickled pink at the display, there was another facet of his personality, one which had not reared its head since Sasuke was a care free child. Surprisingly enough it was not something selfish as many would have expected. Sasuke felt pride in his brother and a glimmer of hope. Ichigo might be strong enough to survive in the shinobi world!

However he didn't dare hope that his new brother could be powerful enough to stand up to Itachi if the murderer ever returned.

It took nearly a minute for. the inferno exhausted itself. It left in its wake a charred devastation.

In the middle of the affected area was a small hill, its sides melted to glass. Kakashi survived by creating a shelter with with an earth technique. It was turned into a fused tomb and he had to escape it by using: Doton: Moguragakure no Jutsu (Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique).

Kakashi attempted to surprise the Uchiha and failed, because Ichigo's Sharingan noticed the small tremor in the ground heralding Hatake's passage. Kakashi shot from the earth, walking straight into the waiting hands of the Clan Leader.

A knee in the gut helped his upward motion, which the Uchiha used as an opportunity to deliver a devastating taijutsu combo. Ichigo was using his clan's style, which was an amalgamation of the various taijutsu types faced by Uchihas during the years.

The only notable problems for a master of that style was when faced by both faster and stronger opponent, or an unfamiliar taijutsu type. Outside of that, an Uchiha trained in that school held a distinct advantage against an opponent of similar skill.

However, Kakashi had faced opponents with the same training Ichigo had, and he too possessed the Sharingan. After the first solid hits delivered by the dimension traveler, the combatants fought to a standstill. Their Dojutsu and speed allowed them to parry and dodge their adversary attacks with relative ease.

To the silent spectators, the taijutsu combat looked like a well choreographed dance, punctuated by closing in a lightning exchange of strikes, followed by separation of the fighters, a quick plan of the next attack and a new clash. Both combatants were bruised and bleeding, but the shinobi in the stands could see the tide shifting. Some of them knew that Kakashi couldn't use his Sharingan for prolonged periods of time; the implant was quickly siphoning his Chakra reserves.

Ichigo, as a full bloodied Uchiha was not so limited.

Kakashi held his own for few more seconds, then the fatigue set, and his speed fell drastically. Ichigo saw this opportunity and dived in viciously, slipping his strikes as an assassin's dagger between Kakashi's too slow attempts to block. The Uchiha delivered a few well aimed attacks. He struck at pressure points, disabling Hatake's left hand. Only a desperate shift in the last moment allowed Kakashi to remain standing. Because of that, the pinpoint strikes which should have knocked him out, missed their targets, merely producing grunts of pain.

In a desperate bid for victory, Hatake channeled his remaining Chakra in one last jutsu.

"Rassengan!" - Kakashi shouted as one of the Fourth Hokage's signature jutsus appeared in his right hand.

The sight of the twisting sphere of blue, spinning Chakra, produced shouts of awe from the crowd.

The ex-ANBU, charged at Ichigo with surprising speed. The Uchiha smirked at his attacking opponent, making and eye contact with him. What the Sharingan wielder did, would not have been possible unless Kakashi was on his last legs, with Chakra reserves almost gone. Ichigo met the gaze of the attacking man and smiled.

Hatake's both eyes blazed crimson, the tomoes of the Uchiha's Sharingan visible in them. The clan Head didn't move to avoid the Rassengan, yet the attack missed by a large margin, with its wielder passing close by the intended target.

Ichigo moved, delivering a chop to the back of the neck of his hypnotized opponent. Kakashi fell to the ground unconscious, the Rassengan in his hand dispelling harmlessly.

The stands exploded with cheers. The villages were ecstatic at the display of their new Uchiha. With a fake smile Ichigo waved at the crowds and bowed to them. The Uchiha Clan Leader was painfully aware that he only won because Kakashi's Sharingan was too Chakra hungry. The fact that the Copy ninja didn't take him seriously at the start of the combat helped too, giving him the initiative.

Yet, despite all of that, most of the time the more experienced man had the advantage. This test made clear to Ichigo that he couldn't count only on the skills gained by Masaki's training and whatever was put into his head by Itachi. There was going to be a lot of training and studying in the clan's extensive libraries in his near future.

A swirl of leaves appeared next to Ichigo, deposing the Hokage.

"Uchiha Ichigo, you demonstrated splendid abilities! It is my pleasure to grant you the rank of Jonin in Konohagakure no Sato! " thundered Sarutobi's voice.

The cheers of the crowd somehow became even louder.

Ichigo fell to one knee in front of the Hokage, showing his respect. The old man produced a Konoha head protector, engraved with the stylized leaf that was the village symbol. Hiruzen gave Ichigo the protector, thus making him a shinobi of Konoha.

__"You did well, Ichigo!" ____a__ voice whispered in the Uchiha's mind.

The Substitute Shinigami wondered if he was loosing it, or if it was something done to him by Itachi.

**=CE=**

**Part 2**

**Uchiha Clan compound, Konoha**

Ichigo was glad to be home after the circus which followed his victory. By all accounts, now he was the new village icon. Great for the citizens and their morale, but not so much for him. For Ichigo it all meant that he could expect a bunch of "showcasing" missions, which were going to be a glorified publicity stunts as well as revenue source for Konoha (and his own pockets, Jonin after all were paid rather well).

Of course all that PR crap had a down side. He could expect many forays at places where enemy shinobi would be trying to bag themselves an Uchiha, thus giving him the opportunity to die heroically.

Once his probationary period was over, he would have to be out of the village, leaving his brother alone. That train of thought led to a chat with the old man. Ichigo managed to make his point to the Hokage, so for the next few months, he'll be taking only missions that were expected to last a week at most. That in turn, led to his current meeting with Sasuke and Naruto, who have become card-carrying members of his fan club.

Unfortunately for him, the kids had bad news for him. He apparently had brand new legions of fangirls. Most of them underage too. Suddenly, the prospect of scraps with ninjas out for his blood (and eyes) didn't sound so bad.

On a more interesting note, he had received various invitations from both shinobi and civilians alike. Two of them were most notable. First, there was a dinner invitation by Hiashi, acting in his Clan Leader persona. That was something unheard for generations. An invitation for the Uchiha clan head by the Hyūga's. Attending was mandatory; to do otherwise would be taken as a slap to the face.

The other important invitation was for a weekly poker game, held by the Ino–Shika–Chō trio, which if his inquiries were correct, was a great place to get to know a lot of the village Jonin and catch up on the current could make a lot of useful contacts by going there.

"Boys as anticipated, I won't be going on missions outside the village for at least a month or so. Perhaps two months. While I'm stuck in Konoha, I'll be training both of you. If some of you friends want to join, it won't be a problem."

Both boys were nodding vigorously at that.

"As you could guess, I will have other things to deal with too, chief amongst them being clearing up the mess that the Uchiha business enterprises are. So I may be unable to oversee you every day. However in such a case I'll be leaving you instructions on what to train. You'll be starting tomorrow, after finishing any assignments you have from the academy."he was saying to the boys, while they were dividing their attention between him and the dinner they were decimating.

"What are going to teach us first, Ichigo-san?" asked Sasuke. He had determined gleam in his eyes.

"We'll start with Chakra control exercise and some endurance training. When I have a better idea of your current abilities, I'll make separate regiments for the two of you."

Ichigo finished speaking and frowned at Naruto. He had to teach the kid some table manners.

"Thank you Ichigo-san! It was almost as good as Ramen!"

Sasuke, who was still only half way through his dinner smirked at the show. That was something that make the dimension traveler glad. His little brother was showing signs that he was actually a human being.

**=CE=**

**Next Morning, Konoha's outskirts**

In the morning, before breakfast, Ichigo led the boys on a wake up run, to get their blood pumping. It was time for the village to shock the Uchiha Clan Leader again. On their run, they met a terrible green creature and its unholy spawn. Or at least that was Ichigo's first impression.

Those were a grown up man and a teenager who had to be his clone. They were wearing a body fitting, green spandex. A bow haircut and the greatest, fuzziest eyebrows that Ichigo had ever seen completed the picture.

That wasn't the worst. When they saw Ichigo leading the kids on their morning run, that pair hugged each other while shouting loud enough to awaken the dead.

"LEE!"

"GUY-SENSEI!"

They continued screaming, adding something about flames of youth or other such nonsense.

That wasn't the worst either. It was the damn genjutsu that could rival the best work of a Sharingan owner. The damn thing appeared harmless, almost nice, yet grated on something within anyone who watched it. It was good enough to make Ibiki proud.

Despite making the appropriate sign, channeling as much Chakra as he could, and screaming "KAI!", Ichigo couldn't dispel the never sufficiently accursed thing.

There was only one saving grace for that morning's terror. Ichigo's Sharingan wasn't active at the time so he couldn't sear the sight in his mind. Suddenly he understood why the Uchiha's had that big wall around their compound. It kept out the assorted madmen and women running around the village.

That morning's encounter almost made Ichigo restrict their runs to the inner walls of the compound.

It goes without saying that he scrapped any plans he had for demolishing the wall. He wanted to have a small piece of land free of insane people.

After a shower and breakfast, Ichigo led his young charges to one of the training grounds within he compound. He went to one of the trees there and grabbed few fallen leaves. Then Ichigo proceeded to stick them to the back of his hands, keeping them there with Chakra.

"Now, listen carefully. You should already know this, but I want to be sure. It is an important basic piece of knowledge. No matter how much Chakra you have, you'll be a mediocre ninja if you lack control," Ichigo gave a pointed look to Naruto, who blushed. "The reverse is also true. A Shinobi with low or moderate reserves, who has great control, could be a devastating opponent. Take Kakashi for example. He is one of the strongest Jonin in the village. While he has a decent Chakra pool, it's nothing to write home about. Yet, despite using his Dojutsu constantly during our fight, he was able to show few pretty powerful techniques."

"What do you mean, sensei?" asked the blonde.

"Kakashi's Sharingan eye is an implant. That leads to two big problems for him. First, he apparently can't deactivate it so he has to keep his eye hidden. This leads to the second. He is not an Uchiha, so the Sharingan draws staggering amount of Chakra when in use. In contrast I can use it almost constantly, while barely feeling the drain."

"So when I awaken mine, I would be able to keep it on most of the time if I want?" asked Sasuke.

"Eventually. I'm not sure if it has anything to do with how much your body had matured. I awakened mine at sixteen and had no problems ever since then. That's something we'll have to hit the library about."

I had no doubt that Sasuke had went through the Clan archives, however the more interesting information was written in such a was as to need the Sharingan to read. Ichigo had a couple of Shadow clones doing exactly that.

"Now grab a leaf and stick it to yourselves until you get the hang of it. You'll be doing that until you could keep a couple of dozen on your persons."

Ichigo left them to it while he started training with a katana. He hoped to transform the glares they were usually giving each other into a friendly rivalry.

An hour later, when it was time to send them to the academy, Sasuke was able to keep twelve leaves and Naruto was progressed to five. Once the kids were on their way, Ichigo continued practicing with the katana.

For now he was set up as far as swords were concerned. He had found few decent blades in reasonably good condition in one of the Uchiha armories. They would do until Zaeed created his custom blades.

On the down side, he was unable to find any decent armor. He would need another custom job for when it was time for missions.

The rest of the week passed fast. He continued training the kids in Chakra control and endurance. The most notable thing that happened was that Sarutobi finished his investigation in the academy. As a result nearly a third of the teachers were either sacked or retired. The worst of them were having a discussion with Ibiki and his colleagues. By all accounts, the T&amp;I department was going to be busy for the rest of the month. Ichigo wondered what would came out of it.

During that time, Ichigo was going to terms with the person he was now. The memories of the eighteen years he had lived in this world were almost fully integrated with those of his life in Japan. The kids not only helped with that, but the two of them were growing up on him. He was starting to think of them as a part of his family, almost on part with his sisters.

However there were some pangs of pain when he thought about Yuzu and Karin, who were a dimension away. Ichigo wondered if he would ever see the girls again.

There was one more thing that was troubling him. Even now, about a week after he arrived in Konoha, he felt nothing about the men he killed. When he thought about it, Ichigo saw those acts as necessary evil. He wondered if it was thanks to Itachi, that he felt no remorse of regret.

**=CE=**

****Hyūga Clan compound, ****Konoha****

The evening indicated in the **Hyūga ****indication came almost unnoticed by the Uchihas. As it turned out, it was on the same day when the Shinobi Academy scandal became a public knowledge. **

**Ichigo had to scramble in order to get his brother and himself ready. He had decided to bring Sasuke too. The kid, as the Clan heir, had to be familiar with formal affairs such as this one. Besides, Sasuke needed to get out more. **

The Uchihas went to the dinner in the **Hyūga ****Compound, wearing formal kimonos in royal blue color, which had their Clan symbol embroidered on the back. Ichigo was carrying a gift for their host, a rare bottle of wine, made a year before the massacre.**

**There was something not known to the world at large. One of the most profitable business venture of the Uchiha Clan was a vineyard, which was one of the best in the Elemental Countries. It had been closed ever since the tragedy that befell the Uchiha. To Ichigo's surprise, he found the wine cellars under the Clan Compound mostly intact, with the good stuff hidden behind a wall of masterfully weaved genjutsu, which was still active even years later.**

**Needless to say, restoring the vineyard to its former glory, was one of the long term plans of the Uchiha Clan Leader.**

**The two brothers arrived at the entrance of the ****Hyūga ****compound few minutes earlier than the designated time. They were greeted by two branch member guards.**

**"Uchiha-sama, Hiashi-Sama is awaiting you in the dinning room." spoke one of he guardsmen.**

**"Then by all means, lead the way." Ichigo answered with a deep nod, almost a small bow.**

**The dinning room was richly decorated. It was lit up with discretely placed silver lamps.**

**Hiashi was the first to greet his guest, followed by his daughters, Hinata and Hanabi. Behind the ****Hyūga ****Clan Head a****nd his immediate family****, came ****the Clan Elders. At least half of those men and women looked at Ichigo and his brother with barely restrained hostility.**

After exchanging the expected pleasantries, Ichigo gave his host the gift he brought. When he carefully unwrapped the package, Hiashi was pleasantly surprised to find out that it was a bottle of Fire wine, the best vintage produced in the country. He noted the make and year of its creation, and nodded in understanding. It was not only from a small production run, but it was the last one made by the Uchiha vineyard before it was forced to close. The gift was nearly priceless for a vine enthusiast.

While the dinner was in progress, they conversed on mostly neutral themes. It was obvious that Ichigo's host was careful what he said, as if he was navigating through an invisible minefield. It was kind of expected considering the history between the two clans. It was notable that Hiashi was choosing his words very carefully, balancing between being a good host and not aggravating the Elders.

Eventually they reached the day's big news, what was becoming widely known as the Accademy Affair.

"There is this persisting rumor, that you had something with uncovering the problems in the Academy." noted Hiashi.

Ichigo swallowed a bite of marinated chicken and looked thoughtful for a moment. He nodded at his little brother, who had been quiet unless directly addressed by one of their hosts.

"I first met Sasuke at the academy, during a sparring match between the few of the kids. It was obvious that the few I saw fighting were far below the level where students on the verge of graduation should be. I mentioned that to the Hokage and today we saw the results."

"Indeed." Hiashi said his expression a stone mask.

You can say a lot of things about the Hyūga clan leader. He was a stiff cold man, and judging by his actions you'll be surprised to know that he loved his daughters. Ironically enough, that was the reason for his behavior towards his eldest, Hinata. He was terrified of the likely possibility of her loosing the status as clan heir and being branded with the clan's curse seal. That's why he was pushing his daughter beyond any reason, in a misguided attempt to protect her. He glanced at Hinata with a glimmer of hope. Perhaps the idiots at the academy were to blame for her underwhelming performance...

Ichigo did not miss the look, figuring what his host must be thinking about.

"Some of the 'teachers' at the academy made a fine mess. It'll be interesting to see what Ibiki finds out. But it is sure they had negative effect on the progress of a lot of kids. That's one of the reasons why I'm giving additional training to Sasuke and one of his classmates."

The elders perked up at that. An Uchiha training someone outside of the clan when he was not a Jonin Sensei?! Another thing that was unheard of. An elderly woman, who had passing resemblance with Hiashi was the one to ask what was on their mind.

"Uchiha-san, who is the gaki that you are training?"

"Uzumaki Naruto." - Ichigo deadpanned. He smiled politely, awaiting the explosion.

He wasn't disappointed to Hiashi's embarrassment.

"That demon!"

"You shouldn't continue training him!"

" That brat can't be allowed to become stronger!"

It should be noted that the clan elders didn't hate the boy for the burden he was carrying. Their purpose was more sinister. Most of them were power hungry, taking their position for granted. They resented that an attempt a decade ago by the Hyūga clan to adopt Naruto and place him in the branch house failed. Thus missing a golden opportunity to gain control of the Jinchuriki and become an unrivaled power in Konoha. So if they couldn't have him...

Sasuke looked wide-eyed at the elders, wondering why they hated the Dobe so much. He was about to ask but was stopped by a pointed look by his brother.

"Demon brat? I'm afraid I do not know what you are talking about. Care to elaborate?" Ichigo innocently asked.

"The Kyuu..." started saying one of the Elders.

"Silence Fool!" roared Hiashi. "You won't dishonor our clan by breaking the Hokage's law!"

The crowd went silent at that outburst. The Hyūga clan leader made a small bow to Ichigo.

"My apologies, Ichigo-san. Their behavior was out of line. As to your question we can't answer. The Hokage made the knowledge an S – rank village secret, with the appropriate penalties."

Ichigo returned the bow. The slip up didn't go unnoticed by him. It was something that needed some research.

"Apology accepted, Hiashi-san. I won't hold against you something you have no control over."

Hiashi nodded, pondering Ichigo's answer. It had so many meanings.

"I won't be naming anyone, but my brief observations on this year's senior students, shows that they are not ready for the reality of a Shinobi's life. Something that the Jonin under whose command they would fall, will have their hands full with. At least in the time left before the exams, the kids should be able to catch up enough to pass." Ichigo continued as nothing had happened.

Hiashi winced. The evident belief by a Shinobi, who was able to best Kakashi no less, that this year's graduating class may not be ready for even the exams, much less for being genins, was a kind of wake up call. After all, Hinata was one of these kids. He cursed himself for not paying closer attention to his daughter aside from her atrocious gentle fist performance.

"What are some of the bigger problems you noticed, Uchiha-san?" asked one of the elders who had been silent so far. His granddaughter was in the academy, so he had a keen interest in the subject.

"Besides outright sabotaging the training in some instances, the taijutsu was the most glaring mess I saw. Further, at least few of the students were lead to grossly overestimate their abilities." Sasuke cringed at that. The last few days of training with his brother had been a rude awakening.

"It won't be a stretch to think that few so called teachers had also helped make other students suffer of inferiority complex." Ichigo added, glancing at Hinata.

Observing her behavior this evening and adding the little he had learning from his brother when they were talking about how the days at school went, added up to that. It was a logical conclusion and mostly correct. It was just that the arrested academy teachers were not the ones to blame in this case. The perpetrator was his host, Hiashi, thanks to the cold and sometimes outright cruel way he acted towards Hinata.

The dinner ended on that somber note, leaving some food for thought to the Hyūga clan leader.

**=CE=**

**Part 3**

**Uchiha Clan Compound, Konoha**

The morning after the dinner with the Hyūga, Konoha's Shinobi Academy saw further changes. Two of the competent teachers, who were left saw promotion. Those were Iruka and Mizuki. They were charged with preparing the graduating students for the exams, which would be different that year.

That morning Ichigo was at his home. He created two clones and left them to continue reading through the clan archives. Then he went out craving something sweet.

He made his way to a dango shop, wondering if the ones made in Konoha were different from what he had eaten in Japan. On his way there, Ichigo was a bit absent-minded, while wondering what should be the next step in the children training. The only thing he had planned so far was teaching them the inevitable tree climbing.

He was distracted and didn't notice in time Kurenai, who was exiting the shop. They bumped into each other, the collision sending a flare of pain in the Kunochi's wounded leg. Kurenai stumbled, dropping the pack of dango, she was holding.

Despite being Startled, Ichigo managed to catch the woman, stopping her fall. Kurenai paid him no attention and winced when the sweets fell to the ground, tumbling out of their wrapping.

Ichigo felt a chill run down his spine. He heard a gasp and sensed a spike of killer intent which concentrating on his person. The Uchiha turned around to see a Kunochi with purple hair. She was wearing tan trench coat, which was barely covering the rest of her "clothes".

However his eyes were glued at the rest of her outfit. She wore a criminally short, orange skirt and a fish net which was barely covering her ample bosom. His eyes roamed over the Kunochi, stopping at her breasts, which were only partially covered. His gaze fell on a snake fang shaped pendant, which was nested between her heavenly globes. He wondered how they will feel to the touch.

"__Finally! You noticed a woman! I'm so proud of ya! And what a body!" ___the _second voice cheered in the Uchiha's head.

"My dango!" an angry hiss prompted Ichigo to look the purple haired Kunochi in the face. It was beautiful. With oval, almost heart shaped contours and soft features. Her brown, pupiless eyes were blazing with fury.

"You should run now. Messing with Anko's dango is a big No-no." Kurenai whispered to Ichigo.

The words of the recuperating Kunochi were proved to be true moment later, when the named Anko, launched a kunai at Ichigo's face. He moved his head to the side, and the weapon missed by a hair. The pissed off Kunochi made a punching motion and grinned wickedly.

"Sen'eijashu! (Hidden Shadow Snake Hands) " two green vipers shot from the sleeve of her extended right hand, streaking at Ichigo. The froze for a moment, gawking at the serpents. 'Snakes! Of course it had to be snakes!' Ichigo thought shuddering. He grabbed Kurenai and used Kawarimi no Jutsu to get them out of the way.

"Praise the log." He muttered, already developing a healthy respect for the wooden, life saving items. He gently released the hurt woman and moved like a blur.

"Let's take this somewhere with no bystanders." he said a moment after grabbing Anko.

Ichigo used the body flicker technique to get them away.

They appeared on a nearby training ground. Thanks to the struggling Kunochi held by the Uchiha, they landed in a rather compromising position. Ichigo was on his back, straddled by Anko, his left hand holding a soft, yet firm globe. It took him a second to comprehend where his arm had wandered. Ichigo's eyes glazed, his face becoming crimson. He moved his appendage away as if he had touched a red-hot coal, but it was far too late. He had to sacrifice another log to escape a bunch of newly summoned snakes. His evasion was followed by an indignant shout.

"Stay still!"

"The hell I will!" he shouted, before disappearing in the nearby forest.

Anko smirked, producing a kunai and liking its blade.

"I so love a wild hunt!" she whispered. Her blood was tingling in anticipation.

She followed Ichigo, who was running for dear life. His sense for self preservation was telling him that this Kunochi was much worse than a pissed off Tatsuki.

Ichigo jumped on another tree branch, ducked at the sound of a multiple kunai heading towards him. He evaded the pointy objects, then jumped away from another pair of snakes who pounced at his previous position.

Running away wasn't working. At this rate he'll just be tired when she caught up to him. The Uchiha made his way to a small meadow and activated hid Dojutsu. Seconds later he had to evade half a dozen kunai. It was simple matter, as far as he was concerned. The world appeared to slow down thanks to the enhanced perception granted by the Sharingan. So it was rather easy to sidestep the weapons and snatch one from the air.

Ichigo had to remind himself that he was a shinobi and going out unarmed was a great way to get killed.

The sassy Kunochi, stalked out of the brushes, with a grace suited for an accomplished predator. His eyes followed her every move. Thanks to his Sharingan, it looked like she was putting out a sensuous display.

Anko pointed her arms at her prey, and launched six snakes at him.

The man just stood at the center of the meadow, with a kunai on the ready. While she was mildly impressed at his earlier display, what he did next floored her. Anko's snakes turned in mid-air, flying back at her.

The tails of the summons, which were still in her sleeves, curled around her arms like a vise, thus preventing her from defending herself. Before she could react, her body was bound tight by living ropes. One of the vipers came face to face with its mistress and hissed at her.

Anko could see the eyes of the snake. They were red, in the form of the Sharingan.

The reptile which was looking at her face, waved its head in amusement and gently bumped her forehead with its scaly nose.

'That insufferable Uchiha!' Anko fumed.

"Now, that's a good girl." Ichigo smirked and left in a swirl of leaves.

Few minutes later the snakes eyes lost the Sharingan forms and the reptiles released their mistress, hissing in indignation at her curses. It wasn't their fault!

Anko looked at one of her familiars and pouted childishly.

"Don't hiss at me!"

**=CE=**

****Hokage tower, Konoha****

That evening, Ichigo was summoned by his boss. The old man was sitting on a comfortable looking armchair, puffing from his pipe. His face was hidden by a green book with title: "Icha – Icha: Paradise". Sarutobi was giggling perversely, while his clones were handling the paperwork. From time to time, they were giving dirty glances to their original.

Ichigo went behind Hiruzen and looked over the old man's shoulder. Ah. Hiruzen was reading smut.

"Ichigo-kun!" Sarutobi exclaimed, now paying attention to the red faced Jonin. The Hokage chuckled at the look in the young man's face.

"It's a good book from Jiraya-kun. You should try some of his works."

Ichigo nodded. The little he had glimpsed was interesting...

**=CE=**

****Interlude****

Far away from Konoha, a self styled "Super! pervert", was in a seedy bar, sipping a piss – poor beer. Jiraya of the Sannin was waiting for one of his contacts, hoping that the woman had some information about the whereabouts of his treacherous teammate. Suddenly the eyes of the white haired man were lit up by flames of joy.

"I feel a disturbance in the Perverseness! I may yet win a new disciple!" the Sannin exclaimed while giggling. He managed to scare the patrons of that not so fine establishment.

**=CE=**

****Back in Konoha****

The Hokage, closed his book. He was in a bind. The Uchiha's testing last week had gone much better than expected. The result was predictable, yet Hiruzen hadn't expected quite so much pressure to send Ichigo on missions as he was receiving.

The original plan to keep the newest clan leader under wraps for couple of months, while under observation by ANBU wasn't going to cut it. Konoha already was buried under scores of missions which requested Ichigo's participation, and it was going to become worse as time passed. The excuse that the Uchiha was already on mission or busy with clan business, which was actually true, wouldn't cut it either.

The Hokage had to send Ichigo on at least few high profile missions, soon or loose some business, which would be bad for Konoha. However, if they had misjudged the young man, the consequences of giving him somewhat free reign would be even worse...

In the end the Hokage's decision was influenced by one simple fact. For the next week or so, he had an ANBU team free to act as babysitters for Ichigo.

"I have a mission for you. One Nakimyra Reiji has been located. He is one of the biggest drug runners in the country and an embarrassment for the Daimyo, being a second cousin. Nakimyra needs to be removed together with his associates. It is an assassination mission. As this is your first assignment as a Konoha Jonin, I'll be sending you with an ANBU backup in addition to your partner for this mission. She should be here any moment. "

"Duly noted. By the way can you recommend some books? " Ichigo asked the Hokage.

He was curious if those books were really that good considering that Kakashi was addicted to the things, and now apparently Sarutobi too.

The old man smiled. Another convert for the goodness that were Jiraya's works!

"Everything written by Jiraya. My student is great!" Hiruzen said with pride.

The promised back up arrived, forcing the office doors open a bit too roughly. Anko strode in the office with a bounce in her steps. Hiruzen stiffened a groan. She was again high on sugar. Anko who was more hyperactive than usual was a bad news.

"Ichigo-kun, meet Miratashi Anko."

The Uchiha smirked and greeted her:

"Hello, crazy snake girl!"

Her answer was another kunai thrown at his face. This time he was not fast enough, and the bladed weapon left a thin bloody line on his left cheek.

"Anko!" the Hokage was not in the mood for her antics. His commanding voice stopped the Kunochi before she could throw another weapon.

She pouted cutely, while her eyes were trailing Ichigo's bloody cheek.

"You two have a mission to do. If you manage not to kill each other..." the old man trailed off. Sometimes he wondered whether he was running a damn madhouse.

Anko somehow managed to sneak up behind Ichigo, while he was looking at the Hokage. She hugged him from behind and started licking the blood on his cut cheek. The Uchiha stood frozen in place. He was torn. On one hand, he was freaked out by her behavior, yet at the same time, he found the presence of the beautiful woman spooned over his back alluring.

'She's a bloody vampire too.' the Uchiha thought, while with a supreme effort of will, he was keeping a calm outward appearance.

"Tasty blood..." Anko crooned in his ear, disturbing him ever more.

"Ahem. You two can cuddle later." Sarutobi intervened.

"Yes! Places to be, people to kill! Have to go now!" Ichigo managed to extract himself from the clingy Kunochi, and disappeared so fast it looked like he was trying to break the speed of light.

An hour later, after leaving a clone with assignments for Sasuke and Naruto, Ichigo was at the village main gate, waiting for Anko to arrive. He was clad in old fashioned ninja armor, similar to what his ancestor Madara had used. It was painted with a forest centered digital pattern, something that took hours to bunch of his clones to make. With the katana on his waist, the Uchiha looked more like a samurai than a shinobi.

To be honest, he was put off by the assignment. Ichigo expected to be confined to Konoha's proper for few months at best. That's why he believed that this mission was another test. Sarutobi was giving him enough rope to hang himself.

Ichigo's musings were interrupted, when someone hugged him from behind. He felt soft breasts pressing at his back.

"Miss me?" Anko whispered in his ear, her voice sending shivers down his spine. Not unpleasant ones this time.

"Yeah I'm lost without you." he answered honestly.

Literally. Anko was one of the interrogators who had gotten the info of the target and was the one supposed to brief him on the target location.

"Let's go! I want to have some fun!" she released him and moved out at ninja speed.

Ichigo shook his head at the sudden change of attitude and followed her. Six masked shadows went after them, keeping a distance of few hundred meters.

Few hours later, the run at ninja speed through the canopies of the trees had a calming effect on the Uchiha. Ichigo was moving few paces behind the Kunochi, leaving her to lead the way. That allowed him to notice how she turned her head to him a few times and was about to say something, but thought better of it and silently continued forward. He frowned. She did not strike him as an indecisive woman. Ichigo hastened his speed, coming shoulder to shoulder with her.

"Anko spill. What is bothering you?"

She huffed, biting her lower lip.

"Thank you." Anko whispered.

"Um, you're welcome?" was Ichigo's confused reply.

"Kurenai. You saved my friend." she added, seeing his confusion.

"Ah. No problem. Anyone in my position would have done it." Ichigo stammered.

'Not Orochimaru.' Anko thought, anger flaring in her eyes. You could say that Kurenai was her only true friend left in the village. After the Sannin's betrayal, the rest of her friends, not that there were many to begin with, had grown distant, sometimes outright hating her. They saw in her a stark reminder of her sensei, and the horrors he had wrought before being found out.

"Why the long face?" Ichigo asked, seeing the change in her expression.

"Just a bad memory." she brushed off his concern.

The dimension traveler decided not to push her and changed the topic.

"You are an interesting woman," he paused, studying her for few moments. "I've been in Konoha for only a week, but I would have expected to hear about you before our accident this morning. Why's that?" it was a good question.

Ichigo had met or heard about most of the notable Jonin and Tokubetsu Jonin in Konoha. While the village had about twelce thousand ninjas of all ranks, the active Jonin were about one percent of that number. Besides, Anko was quite the character, bound to make people notice and mention her. On the other hand, on average, nearly eighty percent of that number were spread through the Land of Fire and beyond.

She muttered something unintelligible under her nose, thinking 'Here we go again. Once he know about Orochimaru, he'll hate me like the rest'.

"What was that? Can't be some deep dark secret can it?" Ichigo joked, hitting the bulls eye.

"I was Orochirimaru's apprentice." she mumbled, almost too fast to hear.

She looked at Ichigo, dreading his reaction.

"So?" he deadpanned.

Anko was floored by the unexpected answer, almost stumbling in surprise. She barely avoided smashing into an inconveniently placed tree.

"So!?" she shouted. "You are supposed to hate me now!" Anko deflated. Confusion was written all over her face.

Ichigo grumbled in irritation. 'Do I have to play councilor for everyone in this god forsaken village?!' he thought looking at the heavens for answer. 'I should start charging for this stuff...'

"You don't look like the snake sannin to me. You are not him in disguise, right?" he jested, earning a glare. "Anko, you are not that bastard, and I have no intention of holding his crimes against you. You were a kid at the time, another of his victims, not someone who should pay for his sins." Ichigo added in a serious voice.

The Kunochi looked at Ichigo, giving him small smile. They continued their journey, the Uchiha asking Anko various questions, curious about her. Obviously, she did not get many opportunities to chat, because before they reached their target, he had learned a lot about the woman. She had an unusual hobby, one he would never have guessed – tea ceremonies. Anko had found it to be a relaxing activity, helping her to cope with all the hatred she had to deal with.

That was followed by a looong explanation about the different types of dango and why it was the food of Kami-sama himself, followed by enough harmless information about Kurenai, that Ichigo had the feeling he had grown up with the said Kunochi. He also learned more than he ever wanted to know about poisons. It was a very useful knowledge, but the woman's fascination with the deadly substances was unhealthy.

The duo was followed by Cat and her team, who so far remained unnoticed.

**=CE=**

**Part 4 **

****Nakimyra Reiji's base of operations, midnight** **

The target had a pretty nice setup, the drug dealing bastard. For a clueless civilian, that is.

The camp was situated in a large clearing, about a mile in diameter. It was surrounded by a low, square palisade, which had a watch tower at each corner as well as two at it's only entrance. Those were the only lit up places on the perimeter.

While there were a lot of guards patrolling around the palisade, they were spread out, barely seeing each other in the darkness. A bunch of competent samurai could pick off most of the awake defenders without raising alarm. It would be little more than a training exercise for a green genin team.

It went without saying that the two shinobi had a lot of ways to defeat the flimsy defenses around their target, even if the so called guards had a modicum of competence.

As it was, Ichigo was scowling in derision, affronted by the cutthroats "protecting" the camp's perimeter, while he was pondering his options.

The most straight forward course of action would be to burn down the place with one of his more powerful jutsu and mop up the survivors, but the Konoha ninja needed to know if their primary target was home. So that was out. For now.

Skulking in the night it was.

Once he decided on a plan of action, the Uchiha melted into the night. Ichigo was going to sneak in and take out Reiji or search for a clue to his location. Meanwhile, Anko would deal with the perimeter guards, replacing them with henged clones.

Slipping in the camp was a child's game. A bit of stealth, a low level genjutsu, and if he desired, Ichigo could have walked through the front entrance without being noticed. Instead, he slipped between two groups of men, who were guarding the wall.

Inside the camp, he found that most people were asleep, with the exception of some men who were busy drinking and entertaining themselves with whores brought from the nearby town of Verdana.

Ichigo didn't pay them much attention, and move amongst them like ghost. He found a bit of amusement in thinking how his old self would have reacted in such a situation. Despite how little effort it took to sneaking in, the teen from Karakura was liable to fuck up. That Ichigo Kurosaki simply didn't have the temperament for such a work. He would have charged in and simply beaten everyone in his way until finding Reiji.

Straightforward. Might have even worked against such rabble, but against someone who knew what he was doing, like the really dangerous people in both worlds, such a stunt would have backfired spectacularly.

Ichigo silently thanked Masaki for all the training she had cramped up in his head, and took a moment to sadly ponder how he would have turned out if she wasn't murdered by that never sufficiently damned Hollow.

"_Much better, in my humble opinion, king. At least now you have a tiiny bit of potential." _snarked one of the voice's in Ichigo's head.

He simply frowned and proceeded with his mission.

**=CE=**

The only dangerous moment in the infiltration phase was when a half asleep bandit stumbled from his tent, while the Uchiha was about to pass near it. The shinobi froze, becoming a part of the night's shadows.

The cutthroat came near his position and unfastened his trousers, relieving himself in the dark spot where Ichigo had hidden. The ninja had to restrain himself from killing the man outright. The bastard had just pissed all over his feet! Thank god for watertight boots... When the man returned to his tent, Ichigo used a silent water jutsu to clean up his boots, cursing silently. He wondered if the shinobi who passed through the academy, were taught to deal with such stuff.

The only silver lining was that, Ichigo made his way to the center of the camp without further distractions. There he found one of the few permanent building the bandits had erected, a small single floor house.

The substitute shinigami checked for traps and alarms. For his trouble, he found a wire connected to the door. He traced it using his Sharingan and noticed it was leading to some unknown mechanism, which to his surprise was hidden well enough to fool most genin and even more than few green Chunin.

After careful examination, Ichigo concluded that it was an alarm.

Moving swiftly, he picked the lock of the door and proceeded to disable the alarm before it could go off. Ichigo found no more surprises waiting for him as he made his way into the house.

After checking again, just to be sure (thanks to a healthy dose of paranoia which Masaki had instilled into him during their training sessions), he went to the bedroom, where his target was sleeping.

Ichigo wasn't particularly surprised to find out that the drug dealer was napping with two naked women spooned all over him. That was Reiji, all right. The lucky bastard.

Ichigo spent a second envying the bandit, eyes roaming on the sleeping courtesans. Say what you wish about them, but those women had great bodies. For a second, the Uchiha thought that Nakimyra was a lucky bastard, then he smirked.

Reiji's good fortunes, as well as his life were at end.

Ichigo drew a kunai and slit the man's throat. Before Nakimura's blood could spray the women, the Uchiha incapacitated them with precise chops to the neck.

After all, there was no reason for them to die too.

Ichigo would do whatever was needed to protect his precious people and complete any given mission he accepted, but that was all. He refused to go beyond that and become a common murderer.

"_That's a naive train of thought, King. You are a hired killer. An assassin. Your morals would end biting you and the people you want to keep safe in the ass. Remember, King, this is a fucked up world even by my standards..." _the mysterious voice trailed off.

Ichigo shook his head. In the end he would do what he had to, no more and no less.

Preferring not to kill more of the followers of the oldest profession than he had to, Ichigo discarded the simple way of finishing the mission. Burning down the camp, while potential civilians and innocents were in it was out.

He spend a minute pondering his options, while checking the room for something useful. A lot of documents which should be of interest for the Intel weenies and a floor safe full with at least couple of millions Ryo. Yup, no burning unless it was to save himself or Anko.

He decided to use a modified version of the trick he unveiled against Kakashi. Good thing that this time, Ichigo had packed a storage scroll with modified explosive notes, of the type that created a bit smaller explosion but with no notable incendiary effect. After all if he wanted to burn down something, he had it covered with his ninjutsu.

Ichigo created a quartet of clones whose task was to mine the camp with ready to blow up explosive tags and inform Anko of the plan. While this was happening he and another clone busied themselves with sealing all the money and documents.

If when the bandits were dealt with, he was in a condition to do so, Ichigo was going to scavenge the rest of the camp for anything of value. After all, despite his clan's vast fortune (even after all the money that had disappeared while no one was minding the accounts), he could always use some more liquid assets. He had some plans that would require a lot of money to execute.

Few minutes later, Ichigo got a heads up from one of his shadow clones, which was dispelled by irate Anko. The Uchiha already had over half the fortune sealed up, when the call came, so he stopped packing, leaving his clone to finish the job and made his way to the roof.

Once there he made a hand seal, channeling Chakra into it.

The bandit lair was lit up by dozens of explosions. The sights of tent blown up, with pieces of men and women flying in the air was forever etched in his mind, by his blazing Sharingan.

He knew that this was not the last blood bath he'll be responsible for if he lived long enough. More than half of the bandit horde, discounting the sentries already slaughtered by Anko, ceased existing.

All it took was a hand seal, a bit of Chakra, and Ichigo had become a mass murderer.

He was sickened by the slaughter, yet a part of him was satisfied with a job well done. He felt a tingle of pride, while bile was rising in his throat.

Ichigo steeled himself and returned his attention to the task at hand. He couldn't afford to fall apart right now. No matter how deadly she was, he wasn't about to let Anko deal with all the remaining bastards.

When all was said and done, all that was needed to take out most shinobi was a single, lucky hit.

Ichigo looked at the carnage, falling on his training to keep him sane.

He looked at his handiwork with different eyes. It was a blow which would have shattered most coherent fighting forces, and those who suffered it were little more than common rabble. Pandemonium insured when the agonized screams of the wounded, mixed with terrified cries from the untouched bandits. Those who weren't frozen in shock started running out of their tents in panic.

Most of them even forgot to grab their weapons before dashing into the night.

Ichigo couldn't have asked for an easier target. He activated a well crafted combination of genjutsu and ninjutsu. Hundreds of ravens descending over the devastated camp.

He threw few kunai, taking out two nearby cutthroats and used Kawarimi no Jutsu to change position with one of his minions.

He appeared in the middle of five bandits, who weren't panicking, and trying to take command of the situation. Ichigo acted before his victims knew he was there, the first one dying with a kunai stuck in the back of his skull. A palm strike to the throat dispatched second, the man falling down, clawing at his crushed trachea.

Then, while the rest were turning around, the Uchiha drew his katana, slashing open from thigh to shoulder a third man. He followed with a powerful, horizontal two handed strike, delivered from left to right, decapitated the last two, before they were able to face their executioner. It was a feat that should have been impossible for an ordinary human, but Ichigo hadn't been such in either world.

Before the corpses could hit the ground, he was replaced by a raven, whose kaws were joined by the song of its brethren, which flying through the camp.

Absolute chaos ensured, fueled by Ichigo, who was appearing long enough to deliver a killing blow before vanishing and taking another life.

Soon enough, he was joined by Anko, who had watched his handiwork for few minutes. Before she took part of the fun, she watched the show, while assessing Ichigo's abilities as per her orders.

The pair of shinobi made short work of the remaining bandits. When the morning came, of the two hundred and thirty six outlaw's only two would manage to escape in the night. Months later, they could be seen telling their horror story in the Land of Waves.

**=CE=**

Ichigo surveyed the slaughter he had wrought. Thankfully, the remains of the camp were sliding into darkness, because most of the torches and fires were extinguished during the "battle". A single tear fell from the corner of his left eye. He doubled over, retching. The enormity of his actions finally catching up to him.

Anko put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, her face grim.

"For what's worth it, this stuff gets easier with time. This is the life of a shinobi, full of blood and tears. It's not as glamorous as you expected, is it?" she said gently.

To be fair, she was a bit confused by this man. On one hand, he had slaughtered his way through the bandits without hesitation, showing that he had what it took to kill when on mission. Taking out those would be rapists that had assaulted Kurenai was a far cry from from doing it only because you were paid to. At least for some people. In her case it was a pleasure they were paying her for!

Ichigo retrieved his canteen and washed his mouth, spitting a mouthful of water.

"I knew it will be bad, but..." he never finished his thought.

His Sharingan had caught the barely distinguishable shapes of shuriken flying at them. He jumped in front of Anko, who had just starting to turn at the direction of the coming attack, sensing that something was amiss.

Ichigo battered away the oncoming projectiles using his canteen, making it useless in the process.

"Look, Gema! The leaf weakling regrets a little bit of slaughter!" taunted a voice from the shadows.

"They should. Our client's dead, so they cost us a paycheck," a woman added from behind the Konoha shinobi.

"That's the new Uchiha we heard about! The boss will reward us for his eyes!" gloated a third voice.

Ichigo steadied himself, preparing for another battle. Next to him the Snake mistress of Konoha drew a kunai. Her bloodthirsty grin made it obvious that she was ready for more entertainment.

"Are you good enough to fight? You can be screwed over this," she waved at the carnage, "when there are no more enemies around. I won't get killed because you are too squeamish," she grumbled.

"I'm fine." the Uchiha said with more bravado than he felt. Anko was right; this was not the time and place to fall apart.

"Not for long!" sneered one of the hidden ninjas.

Ichigo smiled sadly, giving one last glance at the bodies around him. He felt that he started to understand Itachi.

The Uchiha clan leader placed his left hand on Anko's shoulder. They dissolved in a flock of ravens moment before their location was obliterated by invisible force.

**=CE=**

**Part 5**

****Nakimyra Reiji's base of operations, ****shortly after midnight****

"Shit! Genjutsu!" spat one of the enemy ninjas.

Ichigo was sneaking on the one who just shouted, all the while, he was examining the man's apparel. The enemy was wearing a leather armor over gray shirt. He had cargo pants with camouflage appropriate for a city scope, not a forest. The shinobi had a head projector with a musical note, sewn on the forehead of his black Balaclava face-mask.

The sound nin smelled the lingering stench of piss on the Uchiha, and wasted no time, substituting with a log, thus avoiding a cleaving strike by the dimension traveler's katana. Ichigo darted to the right, his eyes detecting the place of egress for the enemy.

The clan leader was upon his prey in seconds, katana flashing in a horizontal slash. The masked man evaded with a backwards Salto, showing surprising agility. Ichigo followed, a diagonal strike already in motion before the enemy was firmly on his feet.

The katana was blocked by a pair of crossed kunai, their wielder stumbling a step back while trying to regain his balance. Ichigo had to finish this opponent now, he could hear another ninja running towards them. At least that revealed location the third enemy, who obviously had decided to attack him leaving just one for Anko to play with.

Noticing that a second Sound Shinobi was darting towards him, had a beneficial effect on the Uchiha. He regained some of his mental balance, thanks to the additional adrenaline flooding his system.

There was nothing like a treat of imminent death, to straighten up your priorities and get you out of a funk.

The Uchiha pressed down with his katana, forcing his enemy to keep blocking with both hands. The leaf shinobi took a step forward and kicked his opponent in the kneecap with the heel of his boot, shattering it.

The man screamed, his crippled leg unable to support his weight. With a sickening crunch, the joint gave up, bringing down the Sound nin. Ichigo silenced him with an economic lunge, impaling the man's heart.

It wasn't a moment too soon. As Ichigo was recovering his blade, his Sharingan made it possible for him to see a disturbance in the air coming straight at him.

Ichigo replaced himself with a log, which was turned into toothpicks a moment later. The strike also caught up the body of the Uchiha's latest victim, the torso of the corpse imploding.

'Impressive.' noted Ichigo.

He body flickered behind the ninja who just attacked him. The Uchiha showed up to see a Kunochi, who was wearing a body-hugging suit, looking like something a special forces soldier from his dimension would use. Her head was encased in a helmet with integrated gas mask, giving her insect like appearance. The Aburames would approve.

Ichigo wasted no time and stabbed the Kunochi in the back. Her body dissolved in the air with deafening screech. The Uchiha, instinctively grabbed his bleeding ears after substituting himself with another log.

It was not a moment too soon, because a sound wave struck the location he just left. The jutsu blew away anything not nailed to the ground, obliterating everything within a four meter diameter.

The Konoha Jonin groaned, his head echoing with the fucking screech. He had to jump right to avoid another wave.

**=CE=**

The duo of Konoha nin darted in different directions, covered by Ichigo's genjutsu. The world behind them exploded in a rain of kunai which had attached explosive tags and jutsus.

The snake mistress became one with the night's shadows, a deadly predator stalking the enemy shinobi. The ninja with a Sound head protector, met her head on, dual tantos screaming for the leaf Kunochi's blood.

Her answer was to draw a kunai with each hand, their blades screaming in the night. The blades struck with metal screech and the shinobi jumped back, examining each other.

Anko's enemy had a strange armor, which flowed over his body like a carapace. That impression was reinforced by its organic appearance. The Kunochi frowned and threw her kunai at the enemy ninja.

The man deflected one of the weapons and tilted his gas mask covered head to the side and the blade glanced from the hard composite of his mask.

They clashed again, with Miratashi drawing new kunai from the depths of her trench coat. Their weapons met in a halo of sparks, an exchange of fast, precise strikes testing the reflexes of the combatants.

Anko was the first one to breach the enemy's defense. She used a kunai to parry a short sword strike and in a blink of an eye struck at the man's heart. Her weapon failed to penetrate the armor, its tip snapping at the impact. However it struck with enough force to push man back.

The snake mistress growled in irritation, leaving the blunted kunai to fall to the ground and made a punching motion at her opponent.

"Sen'eijashu! (Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)"! She hissed, two snakes shooting from her sleeve.

The sound ninja managed to stab one of the reptiles. His other sword wasn't moving fast enough to make the intercept. The surviving viper bit the Shinobi's left shoulder.

The serpent's muscles rippled under its scales and it threw the man into a still intact tent. He struck hard enough to snap the poles keeping it upright, his momentum carrying him into the tent material, cocooning the man into the heavy fabric.

He was followed by a kunai with hissing explosive tag. The resulting detonation scattered the remains of the tent to the elements. The bright light of the explosion, allowed Anko to see her opponent.

He was unharmed.

The Sound nin had saved himself with Kawarimi no Jutsu. His fingers were busy making hand seals.

"Raiton: Raikyu! (Lightning Release: Lightning Ball) " the man screamed, spheres of cracking lighting emerged in the palms of his hands.

The sound nin charged Anko, throwing the balls of electricity at her.

She dodged the first and jumped in the air, twisting her frame over the second. In the same fluid motion, she drew pair of kunai and the moment she was secure on the ground, the weapons left her hands, flying at the head of her enemy. He was too close to dodge both projectiles. He struck one with an armored fist, deflecting it.

The second one cut through his mask, penetrating deep enough to scrape the cheekbone. The Shinobi grunted in pain, and jumped at Anko, tackling her to the ground.

He was hoping that his armor will be a decisive advantage in taijutsu combat.

He was not so lucky.

The Kunochi grinned at him. Half a dozen snakes erupted from her trench coat, one grabbing each of his appendages. His eyes met Anko's bloodthirsty gaze and he had a moment to be terrified before the last two vipers clamped their poison fangs in his head, their fangs piercing his mask as if it wasn't there, pumping him with poison.

He gave one loud agonized screech. The sound nin choked with foaming mouth and died with a backbreaking convulsions.

**=CE=**

Ichigo's Sharingan blazed in the night, reflected by the visors on the sound Kunochi helmet. She was shooting sound waves from devices in the palms of her arms, blowing everything in her path.

Ichigo smirked, noticing a pattern in her attacks. After every sixth blasts, she had to pause for few seconds to catch her breath. The Uchiha prepared himself for the next onslaught.

A blast from her right hand passed through the place where Ichigo just was.

'One.' he mentally counted. He made a Snake seal starting to knead Chakra into his body.

A stream of sound from the left palm shot at the wildly moving Jonin, missing him by centimeters. The attack hit one of the towers on the perimeter of the camp, drilling through its foundations. The wooden construct shuddered, the young trees from which it was made snaring like kindling, its frame toppling slowly.

'Two' – Ram.

A pair of attacks followed, tweaked to be less powerful but with wider range. A twenty meter semicircle was blown away with Ichigo evading by replacing himself with a nearby piece of timber.

"Thank you log!" he whispered.

'Three.' Monkey. 'Four' Boar.

The Kunochi moved in close a palm strike releasing another attack. It struck the Konoha shinobi dead center to no effect, his body

falling apart into a flock of ravens.

'Five. Horse.

She cursed looking around for him. The sound ninja found him, standing on a tent pole, fifty meters away. She blasted the offending piece of wood, Ichigo jumping over her attack.

"Six." he said and made the Tiger seal.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique) " Ichigo said, using for first time in combat his clan's signature jutsu.

The air leaving his lips as he pronounced the technique's name, turned into fire, while he was expelling the Chakra kneaded in his body. The flames formed a massive orb of roaring flames, ten meters in diameter.

The roaring sphere plunged towards the Kunochi, who tried to Kawarimi away. However she was unable to do so. Her attacks had a drawback compensating for their devastating offensive power and low Chakra consumption.

The backslash of her sound attacks was disrupting her Chakra flow, requiring a brief respite while it was restored. That required her to shut down her Chakra similar to what one does to counter genjutsu, but making her unable to use any jutsu for few precious seconds. She had decided that this drawback was worth it.

Now that decision cost her everything. She was two seconds too late with the substitution jutsu. By the time she would have been able to use it, the sound Kunochi was in the center of fiery sea. The only thing that can be found from her was a puddle of melted metal fused in the center of grassed circle. And that was days later, when the inferno finally was extinguished by a thunderstorm.

Shortly after his pyrotechnic display, Ichigo met with Anko, who had sealed the body of her victim. She had the suspicion that the intelligence people would love to examine the sound shinobi. Miratashi whistled at the raging firestorm.

"Overkill much?" she joked.

Ichigo looked at her pointing at his ears, shouting, "Can't hear you. That bitch messed up my ears. There should be close to million left in the safe. Let's bag it and go back. I need a god damned doctor."

Half hour later, after sealing the bodies of the enemy ninja's and the bandit's heads, they were on their way to Konoha. Their ANBU minders continued shadowing them.

**=CE=**

**Few days later, Konoha**

Ichigo was lucky. No permanent damage to his hearing, just a nasty ringing in his ears for a week, after he was treated by the doctors.

The debriefing with the Hokage was entertaining for everyone, but the Uchiha, who was nearly deaf at that time.

As expected these new shinobi and their strange armor made quite an impact, leading to fires being lit up under the asses of the folks in the intelligence department. Unfortunately there was no new information to be uncovered in the near future.

Soon after that mission was completed, The Uchiha Clan assets audit was finished, showing that fifteen civilian councilmen had their paws in the cookie jar.

Six of them had the foresight to run, the rest stayed, expecting that their connections would protect them. That was not to be. They all were arrested and sent to the T&amp;I department, however each one of them suffered various accidents before Ibiki and his merry band of maniacs could get their hands on them.

Sarutobi and Ichigo knew that this was Danzo's handiwork, however they couldn't move against him without a proof. Needless to say, evidence against the councilor was conspicuously lacking.

On a brighter note, thanks to that mess, the power of the civilian Council suffered a major blow. When the replacements for the arrested and fleeing people were finally able to gain their seats, they found the power wielded by their faction to be a shadow of its former self.

After recovering Ichigo had to go on a new missions with only a couple of days rest in between. At least the assignments went without major problems, enchanting his reputation. He soon was classed as a high A rank Jonin in various bingo books. That increased the number of clients Konoha got and made Ichigo's life in the field more difficult.

Meanwhile his "copious" spare time was divided between teaching Sasuke and Naruto, training himself and few dates with Anko, who now counted him as one of her precious friends. One afternoon while they were chatting in her favorite dango shop, Ichigo mentioned that he was wondering how to enhance the kid's training regimen.

Anko finished siphoning dango from the stick in her arm and smirked.

"The old fashioned way. Use them as target practice."

Ichigo touched the thin scar on his cheek, given to him by Anko on the day they first met. His eyes gleamed with mischief.

"That's a splendid idea! And I know how to make it even better!" he exclaimed, chuckling evilly.

"Umh," the Kunochi mumbled. Her mouth was full with dango.

"You will be the one using them as targets!" Ichigo winked at her.

She choked on her favorite food, dropping the dango stick she was holding.

"You owe me for that! And why should I help a couple of snotty brats?" she growled.

"Because of my beautiful black eyes?"

She glare at him. Well, his eyes were really nice, but that look was far from good enough for her to deal with children. Nope! Not happening!

"And all the dango you can eat while you help training them," Ichigo hastily added.

He was rewarded with a squeal of joy, that put even his and Sasuke's most rabbit fan-girls to shame.

Anko, who threw herself at Ichigo and embraced him.

He was grinned foolishly when she pressed his head in the valley between her breasts. He wondered why he didn't think of offering her a lot of dango for something, anything earlier.

"Free dango!" she was chanting, but Ichigo was too distracted to pay any attention to that.

**=CE=**

**Konoha's Shinobi Academy**

At the same time, in the academy Sasuke and Naruto jumped out of their chairs, as if the poor furniture was on fire, startling Iruka.

They looked at each other. Both of them had a very baad feeling.

"What's up with you two?" asked the teacher.

Sasuke gulped.

"I have the feeling that nii-san is up to something... unpleasant" he trailed off causing his class mates to erupt in laughter.

The lucky bastards didn't have to deal with Ichigo's "brilliant" ideas about training! Not yet at any rate...

That damn sadist had even got them weights. Weights! Did he have any idea how much harder was to run from the damn fan-girls now?!

**=CE=**

The next morning the prospective genin found out that they were right. The way Ichigo was chuckling the previous night when they asked him if there was something they needed to know, was a dead giveaway that he was up to something, but the reality was much worse than what they feared.

Naruto and Sasuke were on the ground panting after finishing the morning marathon. Their sadistic sensei had increased their weights before the run, even worse, Ichigo was chipper as if he had not ran them in the ground.

The elder Uchiha was leaning on a nearby three, with his face buried in an orange book. While his unlucky apprentices were busy glaring at him, Ichigo was reading about the exploits of one Minato Kaze, and was taking mental notes. The story in the book wasn't half bad... But there was that little fact that the damn thing was mostly smut...

Ichigo was torn. His face was red, like a ripe tomato, and he had the instinctive desire to burn the damn thing. Yet, he found the book... interesting.

Before slamming it shut, he wondered if he'll have the opportunity to try some of the positions with Anko. The thought startled him and he almost dropped the book. He didn't think of her that way, did he? She was just a good friend. Right?

Said Kunochi's hand suddenly sneaked around his neck embracing him.

"Ichigo-kun, I never thought you for a pervert!" she whispered in his ear.

"Blame the Old man! He suggested the book!" he stammered. "I had no idea that it was smut until I just started reading it!"

She looked at the book and opened it on the page which he had been reading.

"That's uncomfortable. It's killer on the back."

Ichigo's eyes followed her gaze and he raised an eyebrow.

"Uncomfortable, you say? That should be physically impossible. It's hot but there's no way..." he trailed off.

Anko chuckled merrily, enjoying his embarrassment.

"Been there, done that. Want a demonstration?" she whispered huskily in his ear, making his heart pound in his chest.

He was almost frozen. So much for those seduction lessons Masaki had tried to teach him.

"Hey, ero-sensei! Stop fooling around with your girlfriend and show us something new! You promised us new training!" the hyper active blonde interrupted the shinobi.

"Dobe!" Sasuke face-palmed. The sense of foreboding he was feeling since yesterday skyrocketed.

A kunai whistled through the air, grazing Naruto's cheek. His eyes widened comically and he jumped in the air.

"Oi! Watch where you are throwing those things! You can hit someone!" Naruto was digging himself a deeper hole.

Anko ignored the blonde's antics for the moment, returning her attention to the man in her embrace.

"A girlfriend, eh?" she said quietly.

"I like the sound of that." Ichigo whispered before he could think things through. Then his eyes widened comically in embarrassment.

Before he could stammer a denial, Anko turned him around.

His first kiss occurred under the branches of a sakura tree. He had his back pressed to the trunk of the plant, with Anko's form spooned all over his chest. He was lost in her eyes. Her soft lips crashed in on his own, sending tingle of electricity through his body.

Ichigo's right hand moved on its own volition, gently rubbing Anko's back, sending waves of pleasure all over her. She moaned throaty and pressed her lips to his, her tongue searching for its counterpart.

Ichigo answered in kind, their tongues exploring and dueling, the new sensations blowing the Uchiha's mind.

They were lost in a whirlwind of feelings, their bodies grinding at each other. Eventually, they had to come up for air. The couple looked at each other, gasping.

"That was... Wow. Just wow..." Ichigo babbled, looking at the woman in his hands with glazed eyes.

"I'm that good, eh?" Anko purred.

Ichigo's heart fluttered. The sound of her laughter was the best thing he had ever heard. He was content to just hold her and loose in her eyes, the shadows in his mind left of his actions as shinobi dispelling by just looking at her smile.

Their idyllic moment was ended by a loud snicker, which brought them back to the real world. The sound was coming from Naruto who was pointing at them. Sasuke on the other hand was showing some sense of self preservation and was chuckling at his rival's antics.

A thick mark appeared on Anko's forehead. Her right hand sneaked for a kunai, said weapon flying at the blonde a second later. The kid was paying attention this time, evading the projectile and stumbling back falling on his ass. In the next moment a kunai materialized between his legs, a hair breath away from his family jewels. The blonde gawked backing up with fear enhanced speed.

"You were saying, gaki?" Anko asked with a sweet tone.

Ichigo smirked and pointed at his students.

"Just remember, you asked for it. As you asked, we'll have some additional training before moving to water walking." Ichigo smiled, waving at two nearby threes.

"What is it ero-sensei?"

Ichigo's smile grew wider for a moment, then his features became serious.

"Extreme three walking!" the Uchiha clan leader declared with a straight face.

Sasuke gulped looking at Anko who had a kunai in each hand. The hyperactive blonde cheered and asked, "What is the extreme part?"

A ball full of paint bonked him in the forehead, coloring his face blue.

"Oi! That hurt!" Naruto exclaimed.

"That?! Don't worry gaki, in couple of days you'll graduate to solid rubber balls, and a bit later, the real fun begins!" Anko declared all too cheerfully.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke whined.

Ichigo was undeterred. It was necessary survival training. Besides he had another motive too. Two weeks until live weapons training. Then he'll have the perfect opportunity. The duck nest in his brother hair had to go.

By the end of the day, the kids were painted in all the colors of the rainbow and covered with painful bruises. Their aching bodies were refusing to move and Ichigo and Anko had to carry them to the bathrooms (by using clones, of course, they had no intention of getting painted themselves).

The ninjas deposited the kids in hot bathtubs and left them to rest a bit and clean up. To add insult to injury, the paint was not of a kind easy to clean up. That was Anko's idea. A way to further motivate them to dodge or so she said.

While the kids were soaking in bathtubs, Anko and Ichigo found themselves snuggling on the couch. Their spontaneous kissing session was interrupted by Kurenai, who dragged her friend on girl business. Ichigo wisely didn't want to know.

Besides he was in a daze. It wasn't like he had had a girlfriend before, in either of his lives...

The next weeks were some of the best in his life. The missions he went to were without hair-raising adventures and the training of the kids was progressing great. Sasuke and Naruto were so far surviving the live weapons fire, with the only downside the damned infernal luck of that duck nest, which was somehow still whole despite Ichigo and Anko's best efforts.

He was starting to believe that his little brother was cursed!

As far as he and Anko were concerned, the things were proceeding smoothly, with the couple spending most of their free time together, talking and making out.

At that time, as far as he knew, his only problem was that his bloody custom katana was not ready. Massani had been recalled to active duty to help with the research of the armor retrieved by Anko and had not enough time to finish the job. Little did he knew, that this was the calm before a storm, which would change the Elemental nations forever.

The first sign of the things to come would manifest just after the graduation of this year's classes in the academy...


	4. Chapter 4 v2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto! They belong to their respective owners.**

**'Bankai!' - thought**  
**"Bankai!'' - speech**  
**_"Bankai!"_ \- Zanpakuto/demon speech**

**Cursed Eyes**

**Chapter 4**

**=CE=**

**Part 1**

**Uchiha Clan Compound  
Konoha**

A month after his first official mission for Konoha, Ichigo could be found on one of the training grounds at the back of his Clan's complex. He was about to teach Naruto the Shadow Clone Jutsu.

The Uchiha Clan leader had a very good reason for that.

Even after becoming decent with the water walking exercise, Naruto was unable to produce a standard clone that looked alive. Thanks to his Sharingan, Ichigo could see that the hyperactive kid had so much Chakra that the smallest amount he could use proved to be too much for that jutsu. In his opinion, the blonde might never be able to create a standard academy clone, no matter how much his control improved. The reason was simple. In the short time Ichigo trained the kid, Naruto's Chakra reserves continued to increase, negating significant part of the benefit gained by the control exercises.

At least Naruto had stopped (mostly) with the pranks, taking his comic relief by helping neutralize the fan-girls who were assaulting the Uchiha compound every day. Thanks to the blonde's effort, their break in attempts were steadily decreasing in number.

On the plus side, now that the prankster king had seemingly retired, it was relatively safe for Ichigo to teach him that skill. The Uchiha was reasonably sure that he would not have to explain to bunch of incensed ANBU, why their nemesis had multiplied hundredfold. Which was a very good thing in his book.

That afternoon, Naruto proved that even Ichigo was underestimating him by learning the Shadow Clone jutsu in under two hours. On his first successful attempt, the blonde filled the training ground with two hundred copies of himself.

"Bloody hell!" Ichigo exclaimed, looking at the dark sea. He was eternally grateful that Naruto was dressing sensibly now. The last thing the clan leader needed was to be struck blind by sea of orange.

Then Ichigo grinned. If he used the Shadow Clones to their full potential, Naruto could become one scary ninja.

Ichigo grinned at the horde and said, "I guess you win. The moratorium on ramen is over."

That had been Anko's idea, which went into effect a day after she joined in training the kids. Naruto had tried to prank her in response of the "paint treatment" when she started tort... ahem, training them. That had backfired spectacularly. The consequences were clear; now the blonde was terrified of snakes and considered Anko the scariest person on the planet. When she had decided that the runt needed healthier diet, Naruto had paled, gulped and nodded frantically.

That incident had interesting results. In next few months, the blonde had grown up five centimeters, filled in and looked healthier than any previous time in his life.

"Lead the way to your favorite ramen shop. My treat," Ichigo said, showing how clueless he was about the blonde's ramen appetite. He was nearly deafened by the cheer of hundreds of Shadow Clones.

"And get those dispelled. In small groups!" grumbled Ichigo.

Naruto obliterated his previous speed talking record, constantly babbling about the goodness that is Ichiraku's ramen. Ichigo followed the kid, shaking his head with amusement. Soon they reached their destination, a food stand owned by a jovial man in his early forties.

"Hey! Ayame! It's Naruto-kun!"

A cheerful, slender girl appeared from the back, her soft brown eyes falling on Naruto. She grinned at the kid.  
"Naruto-kun, where were you? We were worried that something happened to you!" she exclaimed.

"Whatever it was it was good. Look at him!" the shop owner smiled.

"Training with the Crazy Snake Lady!" Naruto grumbled. In the next moment he received a hard slap on the back of his head.

"Uzumaki!" the warning in Ichigo's voice was clear.

"Ouch. She happens to be his girlfriend!" Naruto rubbed the back of his head and pointed accusingly at Ichigo, who smiled proudly thinking about Anko.

Ichigo was slowly eating his ramen, glancing at the brown haired girl. He was sure he had never met her before, yet her face was painfully familiar.

_"Itachi knew her," _the voice in his head was solemn. The Uchiha was startled. All he could do was clamp on the spoon in his mouth, trying not to jump in the air. Again he wondered if he was going insane.

_"You are as sane as possible considering the situation. That's not the question you must ask yourself. Who are you here and now? Kurosaki Ichigo, Uchiha Ichigo? And once you know the name, you'll have to understand the man behind it."_

'Back in Karakura town or even here... Few weeks ago answering this question would have been easy. But now...' Ichigo looked to the left where he could see his image in the mirror like surface of nearby window. Black hair and onyx eyes looked back, from a face which was similar, yet different from that of Kurosaki Ichigo. He clenched his fists in indecision.

_"You know, King,"_ the other voice in his head said, _"Uchiha Ichigo is who you might be now, if your mother wasn't murdered by that hollow. Somewhat cheerful kid who likes to joke from time to time and occasionally flirts with beautiful women... By the way, great work with Anko!"_

_"You are a shinobi now, Ichigo. Ever since dealing with Reiji, you've been wearing different masks, while trying to decide who you want to be, could be, without losing yourself. Soon, you'll have to make a choice, Ichigo. Both in heart and mind."_

Ichigo shook his head as if exiting a trance and wondered what that was about. They finished eating in silence.

"That's all for today. Tomorrow you'll start using the shadow clones to study for the exams. I expect that both you and Sasuke would be going to ace them. Go get some rest," Ichigo said and waved Naruto goodbye.

He knew that this night sleep won't come for a long time.

**=CE=**

**A ****Few months later  
Hokage Tower  
Konoha**

For the first time in what felt like decades, Sarutobi's desk was clear from paperwork, and it wasn't thanks to his Shadow Clones. Soon after the audit of the Uchiha Clan assets and the arrests that followed, the paperwork which came for Hiruzen to check and sign, was cut by over a third, thus becoming a manageable load. That was something that made Sarutobi a very happy man.

This had the unintended side effect of making the lives of the Shinobi under his command a bit easier. After all, when your boss is cranky, he usually manages to make you feel his ire even if that wasn't his intention. Making the Hokage a bit easier to deal with had won some major kudos to the one responsible – a Uchiha, who was hoping to cash in on the good will of his commander. The reputation he had earned doing missions, since arriving in Konoha would help too.

Ichigo wanted to be the Jonin-sensei of his brother and if possible Naruto's too. The dimension traveler had found the classified files of the military police, which had been ran by his father, and after reading the documents, his suspicions about the blonde were confirmed.

In the last few months, the brat had grown up on him and he wanted to help the kid. Considering the fuzz-ball that was sealed in Naruto, Ichigo wasn't sure if most Jonin would train him properly.

Granted, in the short time he knew them; they didn't strike him as people who intentionally would jeopardize the kid by fucking up his training. However, practically all high ranking shinobi on active duty nowadays had lost someone, be it family or friends to the fox. In the end his fellow ninjas were only human and he suspected that if someone else get the kid, they may ignore his needs. Or let their feelings towards Kyuubi get the better of them and take it out on the kid. While that was unlikely, he wasn't too keen on risking such a development.

Talking about Naruto, ever since it became known that Ichigo was training him, the attitudes toward the Uzumaki had dramatically improved. While part of the reason was that a Clan leader was teaching him, the villagers favorite Uchiha no less, the main reason was more mundane. The inhabitants of Konoha were finally seeing someone treating Naruto as a human being on a daily basis, instead as the reincarnation of the demon fox (what a novel concept!).

That example began to slowly change their attitudes.

After all, one of the main reasons for their actions towards the kid were as bad as they were was "Because everyone hates him, duh! So it must be true that he's a demon! We must deal with it NOW". Talk about a crowd mentality.

Well, to be fair, now that Naruto was too busy to prank everyone in sight, most of the villagers were looking like that they may even accept him one day. The fact that he wasn't pissing off the citizens on a daily basis helped his cause too.

Even more importantly, from Ichigo's point of view, Sasuke was making some pretty good progress at becoming a somewhat normal kid. Not being left alone was working a miracles on the younger Uchiha.

Before going to his last mission, Ichigo even heard that his little brother had made friends with Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Choji, two of his fellow future Clan heads.

On a related note, Sasuke had a bit of trouble with Tsume's kid, who was apparently irritated that all the girls were swooning after him. That situation had been defused, when the unlucky Inuzuka brat had happened to be at the wrong time at the wrong place. To be more precise, right between Sasuke and his scheduled mob of fan-girls. Ichigo's brother had slipped away, but not before whispering to Kiba that he can have all those girls. The result was a trampled Inuzuka boy, who was now sympathetic to Sasuke's cause.

Everything was going too good, even Anko mellowing a bit. She was not trying to cut up anyone outside of missions and training, (if you discount that dumb drunk Chunin the previous week, who after failing to accept a no for answer would spent few months in the hospital).

As a consequence, Ichigo was waiting for the other shoe to drop. He was well aware that the world they were living in was far from being nice, and sooner rather than later, it would find a way to make that clear to everyone. However, before the next cluster-fuck was scheduled to occur, the Uchiha clan leader had a meeting with the Hokage.

**=CE=**

This was the week before the academy final exams and Sarutobi had gathered all the prospective Jonin-senseis. There were twenty shinobi standing in front of Sarutobi's desk. Hiruzen was looking through the files of this year's graduating students, while waiting to hear what his ninjas thought.

After the academy was cleaned up, and the kids were made aware what exactly they could expect as shinobi, a lot of children had decided not to pursue such profession, cutting the prospective genin by half. Once you consider that a lot of the rest won't make the cut, much less pass the test put by the Jounin-sensei's, Hiruzen would be happy to get ten new teams from this year's crop.

It should be noted that thanks of the mess in the academy many more students were deemed not ready for graduation this year, and even worse, those were the graduating classes made by kids born the year Kyuubi attacked. Needless to say, the graduating children this year would be the smallest number in Konoha's history.

"Let's see who you want for students. Arashi Kenji, you go first," the Hokage opened the meeting, addressing a middle aged Jonin whose face was covered with vicious scars.

"The genin I'll want on my team are..." the man started speaking, naming a group of civilian born kids who had caught his attention.

Eventually it was the turn for Ichigo's main competition as far as his brother was concerned.

"Hatake Kakashi?" the old man asked.

"I want Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto and Yamanaka Ino," the cyclops said, his uncovered eye never leaving a green book.

The Hokage looked pointedly at Ichigo who answered with raised eyebrow. That was a special form of communication, which Ichigo had mastered thanks to his friend Chad. The conversation could be translated as: "You want Naruto and your brother on your team, right?" from Hiruzen and a confirmation from the Uchiha. As it was tradition, all the "friendly and mature" bargaining where the fate of the genin will be decided, would take place after everyone had stated for the record who he wants and why.

Kakashi continued, "They will form a balanced assault team with Naruto as close to mid range specialist, Sasuke covering mid to long range offensive power and Ino in the role of interrogator and support."

The next notable Jonin was Sarutobi Asuma, who had returned to the village last month, after years in service as one of the Daymo's bodyguards. He wanted the next Ino–Shika–Chō trio.

When his turn came, Ichigo decided to bite the bullet.

"I want Naruto who will cover close to mid range combat, using taijutsu and ninjutsu. He knows the Shadow Clone Jutsu and could make dozens of the buggers, he could cover scouting too. Sasuke as mid to long range ninjutsu specialist, and Hyūga Hinata as close quarters combat specialist and scout thanks to her dojutsu. They will make a great assault team, while still having respectable ability in tracking and scouting." Ichigo declared. He naturally had a plan "B" in case he did not get Hinata.

Last was Yuhi Kurenai, who wanted Hinata, Kiba and Aburame Shino for a balanced scouting team.

What followed included a lot of bargains and persuasion arbitrated by the old man, who enjoyed the show.

"Old man, this bickering is pointless. We are shinobi, not a bunch of old women, trying to decide what to buy on the market." Ichigo said, when his patience started running thin.

"Could have fooled me" muttered the old man.

" Maybe it's because I never was a part of a three man cells, and thus missed the whole team training aspect, but the traditional way of handling things is striking me as somewhat odd. Don't get me wrong, the idea of the genin having a permanent Jonin – sensei, who handles the bulk of their training, is sound. However, going by that system sometimes the teams can become too specialized. I propose in addition of the tried and tested system, we rotate the teams for up to a week each month so the genin can benefit of all our diverse abilities."

Hiruzen looked at Ichigo and smiled. The idea was interesting. There were more than a few examples of over specialized teams getting in over their heads and being cut to pieces.

"Ichigo-kun, I believe that this idea has merit. We will try it and see how it goes. You'll get Sasuke and Naruto. So far, you've done a great work with them, and I am not about to fix something that is not broken. Kurenai will teach, Shino-kun and Kiba-kun. I'll give you a choice, who do you want Ichigo-kun? Sakura-chan or Ino-chan?"  
'Two out of three, not too shabby.' - Ichigo thought. Plan "B" works for either of the girls; however there were couple of issues with Ino. First Asuma may get irritated if he did not get his trio, same for their parents, all of whom were clan heads and wanted the new incarnation of their own team.

Plus he really did not want to explain to Inoichi what had happened to his precious daughter, who by all accounts was as big a fangirl as Sakura. After all his entire contingency plan consisted of unleashing Anko on the poor kid. If Ino ended up emulating Ichigo's girlfriend too close, Inoichi would kill him. 'If I'm lucky that is. So let's not disturb sleeping dogs and irate clan leaders.'

"Haruno Sakura." Ichigo said. "When her head gets out of the clouds, she'll have the makings of great medic and support Kunochi. I'll probably let Anko instruct her into the use of poisons too."

The present shinobi cringed. While they all agreed that Ichigo was good influence on the Snake Mistress, she was still the Anko who they all knew and feared. Nothing more needs to be said about that.

"As you wish," The Hokage agreed. "However the last decisions will be made after the exam, depending on who actually passes. Dismissed."

**=CE=**

**Uchiha Clan Compound  
Konoha**

The meeting with the Hokage turned better than Ichigo expected. For him at least. Kakashi for example was left hanging without a team, however, if the gleam in the old man's eyes was anything to judge by, the copy nin was in for a some kind of surprise. Possibly unpleasant.

Until the end of the week, Ichigo divided his time between clearing up all the detail left around the reopening of the Uchiha vineyards; Anko, the relationship with whom was progressing splendidly. In his mind she was what made living in this strange new world worth it. Last but not the least, he gave a bit of additional training to the kids, who were mostly studying for the theoretical part of the exam.

It was hilarious to watch the faces Naruto's clones made every day when they were sent to the library to read.

**Part 2**

**Uchiha clan compound**

**later that day**

So far so good, despite the fact that Kakashi was left hanging without a team. However, if the gleam in the old man's eyes was anything to judge by, the copy nin was for some kind of surprise. Until the end of the week, Ichigo divided his time between clearing up all the detail left around the reopening of the Uchiha vineyards; Anko, the relationship with who was progressing splendidly, in his mind she was what made living in this strange new world worth it; and training the kids. Which brought him to the present time on a training ground, about to teach the blonde Kage Bunshin no jutsu.

Even after becoming decent with the water walking exercise, Naruto was unable to produce a standard clone that looked alive. Thanks to the Fox, the hyperactive kid had so much Chakra that the smallest amount he could use proved to be too much for that Jutsu. At least Naruto had stopped (mostly) with the pranks, taking his comic relief by helping neutralize the fan-girls who were assaulting the Uchiha compound every day. They were steadily decreasing in number. On the plus side, now that the prankster king had seemingly retired, it was relatively safe for Ichigo to teach him that skill. Now the Uchiha was reasonably sure that he'll not have to explain to bunch of incensed ANBU, why their nemesis had multiplied hundredfold.

That afternoon, Naruto proved that even Ichigo was underestimating him by learning the Shadow clone jutsu in under two hours. On his first successful attempt, the blonde filled the training ground with two hundred copies of himself.

"Bloody hell." Ichigo muttered, looking at the dark sea. He was eternally grateful that Naruto was dressing sensibly now. The last thing the clan leader needed was to be struck blind by sea of orange.

Ichigo grinned at the horde and said:

"I guess you win. The moratorium on ramen is over." that had been Anko's idea, the day after she joined in training the kids. Naruto had tried to prank her in response of the "paint treatment" of the previous day. That had backfired spectacularly. The consequences were clear; now the blonde was terrified of snakes and considered Anko the scariest person on the planet. When she had decided that the runt needed healthier diet, Naruto had paled, gulped and nodded frantically. That incident had interesting results in weeks the blonde had grown up five centimeters, filled in and looked healthier than any previous time in his life.

"Lead the way to your favorite ramen shop my treat." Ichigo said clueless. He was nearly deafened by the clones cheer.

Naruto obliterated his previous speed record, constantly babbling about the goodness that is Ichiraku's ramen. Ichigo followed, shaking his head with amusement. Soon they reached their destination, a food stand owned by a jovial man in his early forties.

"Hey! Ayame! It's Naruto-kun!"

A cheerful, slender girl appeared from the back, her soft brown eyes falling on Naruto. She smiled and asked:

"Naruto-kun, where were you? We were worried that something happened to you!" she exclaimed.

"Whatever it was it was good. Look at him!" the shop owner smiled.

"Training with a crazy woman." Naruto grumbled. In the next moment he received a hard slap on the back of his head.

"Uzumaki." the warning in Ichigo's voice was clear.

"Ouch. She happens to be his girlfriend!" Naruto rubbed the back of his head and pointed accusingly at Ichigo, who smiled proudly thinking about Anko.

Ichigo was slowly eating his ramen, glancing at the brown haired girl. He was sure he had never met her before, yet her face was painfully familiar.

_"Itachi knew her." _the voice in his head was solemn. The Uchiha was startled. All he could do was clamp on the spoon in his mouth, trying not to jump in the air. Again he wondered if he was going insane.

_"You are as sane as possible considering the situation. That's not the question you must ask yourself. Who are you here and now? Kurosaki Ichigo, Uchiha Ichigo? And once you know the name, you'll have to understand the man behind it."_

'Back in Karakura town or even here, some weeks ago it would have been easy. But now...' Ichigo looked to the left where he could see his image in the mirror like surface of nearby window. Black hair and onyx eyes looked back, belonging to a face which was similar, yet different from that of Kurosaki Ichigo. He clenched his fists in indecision.

_"You know, King," _the other voice in his head said, _"you are like you used to be before your mother died. A happy, cheerful kid who likes to joke."_

Ichigo froze at that. Yeah, that he was. Like playing a role without knowing how to get out of character.

_"A gift, from Itachi and me."_ the voice added, a distorted echo of Ichigo's own. _"A mask, as all shinobi wear. And a glimpse of a better time. Enjoy the mask while it lasts or become one with it. For tomorrow you'll never be the same again."_

Ichigo shook his head as if exiting a trance and wondered what that was about. They finished eating in silence.

"That's all for today. Tomorrow are your exams so just a bit of light training to get the blood pumping and you and Sasuke will be going to ace them. Go get some rest." Ichigo said and waved Naruto goodbye. He knew that this night sleep won't come for a long time.

**=CE=**

**Konoha's academy**

**Exam day**

Sasuke was sitting next to the wall, using Naruto as a live shield between himself and his fan-girls. He didn't even know some these females. The Uchiha's virtue was saved by the entrance of Iruka and Mizuki who broke the riot in progress. It was time for the jutsu part of the exam. The pair of school kids waited bored for their turn. Ichigo's students were the last two to be examined.

"Uchiha Sasuke, step forward." Mizuki said. The next few minutes were going to decide with which plan he'll have to go tonight.

Sasuke made his way to the front calmly, ignoring the whispers of his schoolmates.

"Kawarimi first."

The Uchiha substituted with a nearby free chair. Next was bunshin, which he executed flawlessly.

"Good work, young man. And now a henge and you are done." Mizuki said with a smile.

Sasuke henged into his brother Ichigo and smirked.

"You pass. Next Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto started by henging in the Fourth Hokage, then he substituted himself with Sasuke, prompting an amused shake of head from the black haired kid and created three shadow clones. To Iruka's pleasant surprise the blonde passed! Apparently it was true that third time is the charm. Naruto went with Iruka, who wanted to treat him with a ramen for the success. Needles to say, Uzumaki accepted. Meanwhile, Mizuki congratulated Sasuke about becoming the rookie of the year. The chunin had a proposition for the young Uchiha.

"As the rookie of the year, there is a special mission for you. It is not too dangerous so don't worry." the man, waved at Sasuke forestalling any protests.

"If you are successful, it will be entered in your record as a B rank."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at that news.

"You'll need to make your way to one of the training grounds. I cleared it up with your brother so you won't have problems in that regard." Mizuki said.

He did talk with Ichigo few days earlier, telling him that there will be a special challenge and possible reward for the rookie of the year. He even cleared it up with some of the higher ups, naturally nor mentioning the true purpose of that particular exercise in deception. There even was another operative in the village, which would sow confusion when the time to act was at hand.

Later that day, the kids met with Ichigo who was working on a project connected with the Chakra armor he had bought. The clan leader had found the possibilities the technology represented fascinating but he lacked the knowledge to finish it up. So much of his free time in the last few days was taken by searching for people with the know how to make it work.

"Ero-sensei! We did it!" Naruto was jumping up and down brimming with excitement.

"Was there any doubt? I've been running you two raged for months." - Ichigo said with a small smile. "Well done. Now back to training. You still have to do today's regiment. Those two will supervise you." Ichigo made a hand sign and in a puff of smoke two clones appeared. The Kage Bunshin led their charges to the nearest training ground where the torture, ahem the training commenced. Ichigo returned to his work, lost in thought.

**=CE=**

**Hokage tower**

**Same evening**

The form of Sasuke could be seen stalking the halls of the Hokage tower, unseen to the eyes of the ANBU guarding the building. He was just another shadow, silently gliding through the empty corridors. He was counting the doors he was passing by, searching for the number 75. He reached it without accident, deftly disabling the alarms. He had less than a minute to grab the scroll and make his way out before the guards made their next round. Unknown to him, a medical nin had used a mild drug on part of the ANBU contingent, giving him the edge he needed to complete his mission. The guards were just a bit lethargic and scatterbrained that evening.

The Uchiha made his way out of the building, thinking that he got away unnoticed. However, two different people were watching his exodus. One was a white haired genin, who smiled thinly when Sasuke exited the tower. The plan was going splendidly. The other was Iruka, who had gotten a tip that one of his students was about to do something stupid. No surprise there. The perpetrator however was anything but. The last person the teacher expected to be doing something such as this was Sasuke, not after his brother had arrived in Konoha. Disturbed, Iruka made to follow his student. The Chunin slipped in the shadows, his arms busy making signs. While the original pursued the younger Uchiha, the clone darted in different direction. The copy never saw the cloud of fine mist through which he passed and did not feel how it started draining his Chakra. Iruka lost sight of his student for a bit, when they entered the forest.

Sasuke was waiting on the training ground as he was instructed. Mizuki appeared from a nearby brush with a scroll in hand. The teacher smiled:

"Here you are! Take this scroll. Your mission is to evade and escape with precious cargo. There are shinobi on their way here as we speak. You'll be rated on your performance. Do not get caught." saying that, Mizuki body flickered away before the kid could get a word in.

Sasuke frowned. The man didn't tell him what will be the extraction zone for the exercise. Bloody adults. The Uchiha heard someone closing in fast and bolted, stashing the scroll in one of the pockets of his tactical vest. Taking the lessons of his brother to heart he had come prepared.

Iruka entered the training ground and saw Sasuke running in the opposite direction. He shouted at his student:

"Sasuke stop!"

Ichigo's younger brother response was to run even faster. Iruka cursed and dashed after him.

**=CE=**

**Uchiha's clan compound**

On the other side of the village, Ichigo was giving proper welcome to Anko, who had just come in after returning from her mission and turning in her report. She was naked, laying face down on the bed, with Ichigo massaging her stiff shoulders. She was moaning, her strained muscles humming with pleasure. Anko had missed their little rituals.

"Ahh. Yes! Right there!" she moaned loudly, Ichigo's magic fingers writing a masterpiece on her fatigued body.

There was a loud crash outside, followed by shout:

"Ichigo! Trouble!"

The face of the Uchiha's clan leader became grim, irritation visible in his eyes.

"Damn it! Now what!" Anko hissed, frustrated. She hated when her reunions with Ichigo were interrupted, and was not afraid to make her feeling painfully known to the offending party. That usually happened with the help of irritated vipers.

Ichigo, who wasn't wasted after a long mission and the mandatory debriefing recognized Iruka's voice.

"Damn it, Sasuke's supposed to take part in some kind of challenge right now." He cursed. The elder Uchiha had believed that his brother could deal with whatever the academy instructors had cooked up without supervision.

He headed to the door, grabbing his pants and boots in the process.

"What happened?" Ichigo asked, clothed by the time he reached the front door.

He saw the panting form of Iruka at the door-frame.

"The boss is after Sasuke. Hokage tower. Trouble." the clone said before falling apart in a pile of mud.

"So the gaki needs help." Anko said, appearing next to her lover. She had dressed up in her trademark attire.

"It's a universal trait of little brothers and sisters. They tend to get in trouble from time to time. Usually when it's most inconvinient. Let's go."

The couple vanished in a swirl of leaves.

**=CE=**

**Hokage tower**

**Konoha**

While Sasuke was chased by Iruka, Mizuki had sent back a clone and raised the alarm. Sarutobi had just entered his office when Ichigo and Anko Shunshined next to him. The old man looked at the clan leader and asked:

"You already know?"

"Just that there is a problem with Sasuke and the tower was mentioned. The clone of Iruka who warned me was less than coherent and dissolved before extrapolating. So what's up?"

"Apparently, Sasuke stole the scroll of forbidden seals..." Hiruzen trailed off when Ichigo scolded and cursed.

"Bullshit. My brother has unrestricted access to the Uchiha archives. There is a copy of most if not all jutsus from the scroll. He has no need to steal it."

That tidbit of information floored the Hokage and the attending ANBU. After the massacre such sensitive information should have been removed! Seeing the expression on Sarutobi's voice, Ichigo said:

"You need a fully matured sharingan to find and read those documents. As far as I know the only people with it are me, Kakashi and Itachi. You can bet your hat that Itachi knew all there was in the files before the massacre. As for me and Kakashi you either trust us or not." Ichigo shrugged.

"Now how to find my foolish little brother..." Ichigo trailed off, unconsciously using the same tone as Itachi when speaking about Sasuke.

**=CE=**

**The Forest Near Konoha**

The training given to Sasuke had done wonders about his abilities, but Iruka had been a Chunin for years and had experience on his side. While the instructor, might have been surprised by the full scope of his student's capabilities at first, now he had him on the ropes. Iruka had tackled the youngster to the ground and had his knee pressed to Sasuke's chest, and a kunai to his neck. The Uchiha's face fell. He grumbled:

"Damn it! I lost. You can have the useless piece of paper!"

Iruka was taken aback by that answer. Did the kid have any idea what he had done?

"Ah, Iruka you've caught our little thief. Good work, my friend." Mizuki smiled, appearing in the branched of a nearby three.

Sasuke looked at his other teacher and groaned. It was obvious now. He's been had. Ichigo was going to kill him or worse, leave him as a new toy for Anko. He was so screwed.

Iruka turned around sensing danger, kunai ready to parry an attack. His eyes grew wide and he grabbed Sasuke, throwing him away. He was forced to parry a hail of projectiles, falling back under the onslaught. A kunai embedded itself just over his right knee, another grazing his left hand.

"I really sorry about that but you know how it is, orders and all." Mizuki shrugged.

"What is the meaning of this, Mizuki!?" Iruka shouted, putting himself between his student and the man he had considered a long-time friend.

"My boss has a fascination with rare bloodlines, and the sharingan is the one of most interest to him. So he needs an Uchiha, preferably one that's with not as much bite as Ichigo is supposed to be.

"And who is holding your leash, traitor?" Iruka asked.

"Wouldn't you want to know?" Mizuki chuckled. He drew a Fūma Shuriken and threw it at his old friend and student.

They darted away, the weapon passing harmlessly between them. Sasuke had to dodge again with the traitorous nin darting to his side and trying to slam a kunai in his shoulder. Ichigo's student took a step back, drawing his katana. Before he could do anything else, Mizuki was replaced by a log, which was struck by pair of kunai, courtesy of Iruka.

"Sasuke, run!" The loyal Chunin ordered.

Iruka could feel poison in his body, a liquid fire searing through his veins. He was weakening fast.

"Iruka-sensei!" Sasuke exclaimed watching how his teacher was swaying on his legs.

"He is finished kid. I've coated my weapons with a special concoction, just for cases like this." Mizuki taunted. The betrayer dashed at his student, with kunai drawn for disabling strike. The Uchiha parried the first attack, twisted back, a second slash missing him by millimeters. He deflected a third, which pushed his blade out of the way and Mizuki planted a powerful kick in his gut, sending him crashing in a nearby tree. Sasuke bounced from the hard bark and found himself on the ground. The youngest Uchiha thanked Kami-sama, for he had retained the grip on his katana in his brief flight. That proved to be a lifesaver in the next instant, when the traitor was all over him, kunai stabbing with a blinding speed. Sasuke jumped to his feet, blade creating a barrier of steel, just as Ichigo taught him. Clashes of blades echoed through the forest, the rogue chunin surprised by the resistance the kid was giving. His brother had taught him good. But the more experienced man had few tricks in his sleeve. He jumped back, throwing his kunai at Sasuke who dodged one and interposed his blade in the path of the second. Mizuki had drawn another pair and threw them too. The Uchiha sidestepped the first, his katana raised to deal with the second, when it path suddenly changed. It turned, passing behind his weapon and twisted, spiraling around his hands. Sasuke found his arms bound by the ninja wire which was attached to Mizuki's weapon.

The traitor pulled the cord, drawing the kid towards him.

"You did well for a child, Sasuke. Give it few more months and some experience and you could have been someone to watch." the captor spoke.

Mizuki gave a strong pull, the Uchiha flying to him. He moved aside, out of the path of the katana his student was still clutching like lifeline and readied a kunai coated with strong sedative. He plunged the weapon in the teen's leg and stepped back, waiting for the mixture to do its work.

Iruka who was too weakened to move watched helplessly how Sasuke crashed on the ground unmoving.

"Well, that's easier than expected." Mizuki chuckled.

"Indeed." a frosty voice answered him from behind.

"Anko, get them to the hospital " Ichigo told his companion. She nodded, looking at Iruka with critical eyes. Obviously poisoned. Sasuke looked much better, his chest moving rhythmically with each breath.

The Uchiha clan leader narrowed his eyes at Mizuki.

"So the clean up missed one rat. Well played." Sasuke's elder brother said quietly. He blurred with pure speed to appear next to Mizuki, with his katana's blade pressed to the traitor's neck. While teaching in the academy, the rogue instructor had been fair and liked by everyone. He was the last one to be expected as a traitor, thanks to his cover as the perfect teacher.

'Too good to be true.' Ichigo thought darkly.

"Ah. Uchiha-san, so nice of you to join us." Mizuki smiled. "Now I can accomplish the second part of my mission."

Mizuki substituted with a log, disappearing in the surrounding forest. He hastily pulled out a storage scroll and withdrew a bottle of thick brown liquid. With a grimace of distaste, the Chunin gulped it down in one swing. The god damn taste was almost not worth it. He fell on the ground choking, his body wracked by convulsions. Mizuki released an animalistic roar of pain, his muscles rippling, growing. From his position a twisting sound of breaking and rearranging bones could be heard. Moments later Ichigo was close enough to see what was happening to the traitor.

"Fuck." the dimension traveler spat looking at the apparition in front of him. Mizuki had become taller, covered with bulging muscles behemoth. His hands resembled tree trunks and were longer, reaching his knees. The traitor looked as a caricature of a giant ape. He roared again, steam emanating from his fists. A wave of potent chakra exploded from the changing man. Golden fur with black stripes was growing all over his body. Ichigo was looking at the spectacle awe-struck. 'I thought the stories about were animals were legends even here!' the dimension traveler wondered.

In one moment, Mizuki was still in the grips of the change, roaring incoherently, and then in the next he was streaking through the air. His right, boulder like fist shot forward creating a crater in the ground where Ichigo was. The jonin had moved in time, pieces of rocks and dust following in his wake. The clan leader looked the devastation caused by single punch and immediately discounted taijutsu as a viable strategy. A single hit with that kind of power will shatter bones. And the bastard was quick, too quick for a chunin.

Ichigo channeled chakra to his throat, melding it into its wind elemental variant and waited for the shape-shifted enemy to attack. With a roar the tiger-man launched at the Uchiha.

"Fuuton: Daitoppa! (Wind Style: Great Break Through) " Ichigo shouted a devastating blast of wind.

Mizuki was caught in the air, with no surface to which to anchor himself. The wall of wind smashed into him blowing him back, amidst a mess of uprooted and broken trees. Moment later, Ichigo had to dodge a meter long splinter which was launched by the beast, who had already recovered. The sharp piece of wood imbedded in a nearby tree.

The misshapen man growled with glee, the power coursing through his body feeling incredible. He ran forward, clawed hands sweeping as buzz saws. The Uchiha weaved a tapestry of flashing steel. Blade met claws and the metal yielded. The chakra infused talons of the beast man chipping the katana with each strike. One more sweep of the needle sharp natural weapons of the shape-shifter and Ichigo's blade shattered, the clan leader forced to jump back with four tears on his tactical vest. The light plates below it were scratched but held. The Uchiha threw away the hilt of the broken weapon and drew a tanto from its sheath on his back.

Roaring, Mizuki charged once again, expecting to be met head on like the last time. Ichigo darted right and the traitors claws slashed through empty air. The jonin jumped, landing sideways on a tree. His legs barely touched the bark of the plant, when the Uchiha used it like a spring board to launch himself at Mizuki. He jumped, turning in the air and delivered a roundhouse kick to the side of the traitors face. The beast man's head snapped to the right with the crunch of broken teeth. Ichigo, who was still in the air, rotated his body and while falling to the ground behind the rogue chunin, brought his tanto in a hard vertical slash. The blade bit deeply in Mizuki's back, leaving a bleeding wound starting from the spy's left shoulder blade and ending at couple of centimeters over where his kidney should be.

The Konoha jonin was rewarded for his efforts with an earth shaking howl of agony. He began a horizontal sweep at the back of Mizuki's knees, aiming to cripple him. Mizuki jumped over the strike, his left leg kicking backwards. Ichigo substituted with a log. The poor piece of wood was demolished instead of the shinobi's head. The clan leader darted from above with his tanto poised to impale his opponent. Mizuki jumped and met him in mid air; the shape-shifter's razor claws caught his attacker and stabbed deeply in his flesh. The traitor's victim smirked and blew up in his face. The explosion threw him on his back hissing in pain. Mizuki stood up, his pelt singled and his fingers smoking, twisted in unnatural angles. He roared in tandem with his pulsing chakra, which had spiked to his maximum. The batsman's broken finger bones popped back in place with sickening crunching sounds.

Ichigo was observing his opponent from the tree tops, mildly impressed by the traitor's resilience. Usually when you take the brunt of the force produced by exploding clone, with your body you don't shrug it off like a flea bite. Ichigo frowned. He drew a kunai and spun it lazily around his finger. He put away his tanto, his newly freed crafting hand seals. The Uchiha threw the kunai, which was followed by:

"Fuuton: Reppushou ! (Wind Style: Wind gale)" a strong gust of wind propelled the projectile like a bullet. The kunai struck Mizuki in the chest, embedding to the hilt. The traitor blinked dumbly and looked at the wound. He grabbed the hilt and pulled it with roar, blood gushing from hole in his chest. Before Ichigo could use again the same attack, this time with more kunai, the rogue nin sprinted at him with blinding speed. The wounded behemoth plunged his right fist into the jonin's chest, roaring in triumph.

His victory was short lived. Ichigo's form fell apart into a flock of ravens, leaving behind a kunai stuck in the ground. In the hoop at its handle was a knot made by ninja wire. Mizuki followed the thin silver of metal to Ichigo, who was on a branch of far away tree saying:

"Katon: Ryuka no Jutsu! (Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu)" - The Uchiha exhaled fire over the taunt ninja wire, the flames gaining intensity and becoming wider as they traveled on the long string. Mizuki acted on animal instinct and tried to evade by jumping to the left, but it was futile. The fire reached its target, howling like the fist of angry god, burning to cinders a wide swash of the forest. Inhuman howls of pain echoed around Konoha. Ichigo landed next to the forest fire he had just ignited. He looked at the wretched form of the traitor. Everything below Mizuki's waist was charred ruin with the flesh burned to the bones. The unconsciousness was not a relief for the dying man; his whimpering was barely heard over the crackling of the fires.

Ichigo's back up finally arrived two six man squads of ANBU, led by the Hokage who was wearing his black combat attire. They were accompanied by a white haired genin of all things.

"Kabuto-kun, try to keep Mizuki. He needs to answer some questions before dying." Sarutobi ordered the young ninja said.

"Old man." Ichigo greeted.

"Ichigo-kun its..." Hiruzen's words were drowned in noise as a spiraling wall of water crashed at Ichigo and the grievously wounded traitor. A torrent of electricity followed moment later, clawing at the wet ground, evaporating the liquid it was following. It struck the soaked Mizuki, frying him on the spot. There was no trace of Ichigo and the genin.

Sarutobi had jumped over the dual attack, his ANBU surrounding him in a protective formation. They were facing in the direction the assault came from. Eight dark brown, almost black forms darted from the shadows, right behind a hail of kunai. They were men, encased in plate armor, yet the assailants were moving with such speed and grace as if wearing nothing heavier than cloth. Half meter blades extended from devices above their wrists and the assassins charged at the Hokage's guard moving like a blurs. The shower of kunai hit no one but forced Sarutobi and half his bodyguards to jump back. The closer squad of ANBU darted forward, tanto and kunai in their hands, to meet head on the threat to their leader.

The fight was short and brutal; the light weapons of the Konoha shinobi no match for the heavy armor. With blades scraping over solid plate and kunai outright bouncing, the special forces squad was for a rude surprise, from which most of them had not enough time to recover. A kunochi with sparrow mask aimed at the neck of one of the assassins, believing it to be a weak spot. She hit hard enough to stagger her opponent but her tanto was unable to penetrate. The impact was strong enough to send vibrations trough her blade, almost wrenching it out of her fingers. The attack had left her right side opened for a moment long enough for the armored man to slip his left blade between her ribs, impaling her. She groaned, spitting blood from punctured lung, painting crimson the inside of her mask. She dropped her left hand, allowing her killer to stab her under the heart with his other weapon. She died with a small smile on her blood stained lips, activating all the explosive notes she was wearing at once. The detonation lit up the battlefield, scattering the still alive combatants. Only two shinobi of the first Konoha wave were alive, thanks to Ichigo. The Uchiha had body flickered among the enemies, capturing one in genjutsu and attacking another from behind. The assassin who had his mind paralyzed by nightmare died when pair of senbon were driven straight pass the opening for the eyes in his helmet and pierced his brain. Seconds' after he died, his body was consumed by acid, dissolving any trace of his identity and leaving only small, badly corroded fragments from his armor. Meanwhile, three more of the ANBU's number were cut down mercilessly.

The self immolation of the kunochi had brought the battle to a screeching halt for few precious moments. That gave enough time for the Hokage, who flatly refused to pull back, and his remaining guards, to join Ichigo and the two surviving ANBU from the first squad. Sarutobi was holding a long, black staff with yellow tips. He was handling the big weapon as it was weighting like a feather. Hiruzen looked at the remains of his ninja's with regret. His eyes stopped over their killers, becoming colder than the wastelands in Snow country.

"ANBU, stand back and give long range support. As long as I am alive I won't allow you to die needlessly. Cat, you are with me." he ordered with a tone that broke no argument and glanced at the Uchiha.

Ichigo gave a curt nod to his nominal superior. There was no need for any more words.

"Hai! Hokage-sama!" the ANBU answered and jumped back reading throwing weapons and jutsu.

The trio of Konoha ninja dashed at the invaders, covered by the Hokage's guards. One of the assassins was thrown off his feet by a wall of water and before he could stand up, quicksand opened below him, swallowing his armored bulk. Another was struck by multiple kunai, with attached ninja wire, two of which bound his arms. He was left defenseless by two konoha shinobi who were pulling the metal strings in opposite directions. Then that assassin was buried under a downpour of wind and fire jutsus, cooking him in his armor which soon corroded.

The woman under the Cat mask was Uzuki Yūgao, one of Konohas premier kenjutsu experts. She was engaging one of the assailants in a duel, weaving intricate defensive pattern with her katana. Her nimble form dashed in and out of the range of her heavy armored enemy, repeatedly slipping through his guard and striking at his left elbow, leaving slashes in the lighter material protecting the joint.

Sarutobi was facing two of the fools who had decided to attack his village and was educating them about the errors of their ways. The would be assassins could not get anywhere near the old man, who used his transforming staff to batter them in the ground. It was just a matter of time before the men in the armor were brought down by blunt force trauma.

Ichigo was dealing with the last of the enemies. He was engaging the blades armed man with a tanto, parrying his attacks with ease. The Uchiha's sharingan was blazing in the night, scanning his opponent's style and observing for chunks in his armor. He found a weak point at the man's right armpit. There was a vulnerable spot made by not enough fit of the armor pieces. Ichigo stilled for a second and moved faster than attacking viper. He blocked the right blade of his opponent, slipped his left hand kunai under it and pushed it upwards, leaving his target exposed. He moved under his opponent right hand and deflected his left blade which was aiming to skewer him. Ichigo twisted the handle of his tanto catching it in a back hand grip and stabbed in the armour's weak spot, putting two spans of steel in the man's chest. The assassin gurgled and fell to his knees, drowning in his own blood.

The opponent of Yūgao tried to impale her with his left blade. She spun around evading the stab and retaliated with two handed vertical strike in which she put all her strength. Her katana struck the weakened armor at the enemy left elbow. This time the blade won, severing the hand at the joint. The crippled man only grunted and continued fighting oblivious to the steams of blood sprinkling with his every heart beat from the stump of his arm. She held him in place, blocking every strike of his remaining blade. His movements became sluggish and he stumbled with not enough blood remaining in his system to keep him going. The only warning the kunochi received was a flash of red over the disarmed man's armor. Driven by instinct she substituted with a nearby branch. That action saved her life when the assassin blew up with the force of twenty explosive tags.

Hiruzen with all his considerable strength delivered an overhead smash on the head of one of his opponents, crushing the entire vertebra in his neck and embedding his skull in the armored torso. He was about to finish the other one, when a loud explosion from behind made Sarutobi stumble. The Hokage's remaining opponent rushed him, seeing his last chance. Sarutobi's staff swept the man away, embedding him in a conveniently placed tree. The man stagered, dazed, and stumbled into a pool of water left by a jutsu.

Ichigo body flickered near the man and made a series of hand signs too fast to follow:

"Suiton: Seibun Houfutsu! (Water Style: Water Cannon Replica)" the Uchiha said.

A pillar of water rose from the pool and engulfed the dizzy assassin. Soon he was drowned.

Ichigo scowled looking at the aftermath of the battle. That had hit too close to home for comfort.

_"Told ya, King. It's brand new world out there. And you have a big ass sharingan shaped bull's eye on your back." _the damned voice said.

"Old man, that stunt these bastards pulled didn't make much sense. There was no way they could have taken you out even if you were alone."

"Indeed. These children were in over their heads. But when you look beyond the obvious..."

It clicked in Ichigo's mind.

"It was a weapon test. To see how the armors held against a Kage and his ANBU guards."

Sarutobi looked thoughtful.

"Perhaps that's your armor fascination talking but it does make sense if one does not care for the men who are sacrificed in the process. However it's not a possibility to be discarded lightly."

Too high in the air to be visible to the shinobi, two figures were observing the battle.

"That could have gone better." one said disappointment visible in the way his shoulders dropped.

"Yeah, back to the drawing board."

The second drew a katana and stabbed in the air turning his hand as if unlocking a door. Mists formed around the blade, and with a subdued flash of light a paper double doors appeared. Before entering the portal, the first man looked back and smiled:

"What a splendid dimension."

"Yeah, It's perfect for weapon testing." added the second.

They entered the portal which closed after them and vanished without a trace.

**=CE=**

**Konoha Hospital**

**later that evening**

After extensive debriefing and cleaning up, Ichigo was in Sasuke's hospital room, dozing in a chair. His little brother was lucky, with no permanent damage from the leg wound or the horse dose of sedative he was filled with. Not that stopped Ichigo from worrying. If he was a minute too late, Mizuki, that bastard would have and could have escaped with Sasuke, while Ichigo was dealing with the mysterious invaders. And the rogue instructor was not the only security breach in the village. There were not more reinforcements for the battle, because someone had impersonated a squad of ANBU and gave false orders for no one to interfere in with the combat. There was a witch hunt in progress now. The situation was aggravated by a hasty council meeting where some people were freaking out and wanted to postpone the Chunin exams which were in six months. Sarutobi had killed that idea declaring that such an action would make Konoha seem weak. That was something The Leaf could not afford. They were the premium power in the Elemental nations for too long, which inevitably had made them many enemies. If Konoha appeared weak their situation would deteriorate fast, and it could conceivably lead to Forth shinobi war. No one wanted that. On the bright side, Iruka was expected to make a recover too, his life saved by Anko's fast identification of the poison coursing through his veins.

Sasuke bolted awake after a half forgotten nightmare. He was in the hospital again. His mind wandered to the last time he awoke here after the massacre and his heart was gripped with terror.

"Ichigo! " he exclaimed, terrified that his brother had followed the fate of the rest of the clan.

"Ah. You are awake." The elder brother said, chasing the sleep from his eyes. "How are you feeling?"

"Hn. Just like after training. Even hurts less. Sleepy though." Sasuke deadpanned, relief showing on his face.

Ichigo chuckled and ruffled his brother's hair.

"You should be up and running in few hours. It's just a flesh wound. Besides you can't miss your own graduation."

"It's today!" Sasuke exclaimed, livening up a bit.

"I'm on your team, right?"

"That was the plan, last time I heard. Now get few more hours of shut eye."

When Sasuke drifted back to sleep, Ichigo's smile vanished. That had been all to close a call. He made a silent vow:

'Never again! I will do all in my power to protect those precious to me!' for a split second his body had glowed with soft blue aura, as if some kind of arcane pact had been signed. Before joining his brother in the land of Morpheus, Ichigo had heard a quiet voice:

_"Go forward and never look back. Stay still and you will age. Hesitate and you die."_

**=CE=**

**Massani weapon shop**

**next morning**

Zaeed had finished his custom made katana a day too late. Ichigo sure could have used it last night. At least it looked like the waiting was worth it. The craftsman led him to his work shop, where the weapon was waiting for his wielder. The blade was a work of art. A meter and a half long katana, which blade had a flawless wavy pattern over its edge. The weapon's hilt was an alternating black and red pattern, with a simple square cross guard.

"It took me a long time to get it right. The metal from which I forged it has a chakra absorbing properties, making it possible to channel elemental chakra in the blade. As a result it should not only take the properties of your elemental affinity but be almost unbreakable while reinforced by your power."

"Thank you, Massani-san." Ichigo said with a small bow, his eyes never leaving the sword. It was somehow calling to him, like a long lost friend.

The Uchiha gently took the hilt in his hand, a spark of energy flying between it and his palm. The katana felt a natural part of him, just like an additional limb. He channeled a small amount of chakra through his hand into the weapon and was rewarded by soft red glow. He intensified the power and the blade was enveloped by merry flames. Ichigo did not feel their heat; however Zaeed had to take a step back. The blacksmith's face was covered by sweat.

_"Zangetsu."_ The Uchiha heard in his mind.

"He is magnificent." Ichigo muttered, looking at the katana with wonder. "His name is Zangetsu."

A voice, filled with pride echoed in the substitute shinigami's head:

_"Finally you heard my name!"_

When Ichigo exited his trance he gently sheathed his blade and still wearing a small smile said:

"Massani-san, I have an additional job for you, if you're interested. There is this armour you might like to look at..."

**Konoha Academy, hour later**

Ichigo was henged as a nondescript chunin and was awaiting all the genins to assemble. It has been a hectic week, with the village on edge. The increased and very visible patrols of ANBU had helped a bit but a lot of civilians were still scared. The new main focus on the intelligence division was to find out where the new armors were coming from. There were multiple teams heading to the land of Snow, which was the most probable source. Konoha's own R&amp;D department had new task too to find a reliable way of dealing with heavy armored enemies. Especially for situations when the most destructive jutsus were impractical. The thought of a few squads of enemy ninjas with such protection breaching into Konoha's proper gave a lot of restless nights to the people who saw them in action. Rooting out such a force from the village without great collateral damage would be a fucking nightmare.

The henged Uchiha looked around the room. It seemed that all the graduates had come in. And they were ignoring him babbling about last night's events. A tick mark appeared on his forehead and he shouted, using Iruka's patented jutsu:

"Shut the Fuck up! You are genin now so act the part!"

The crowd went still and looked at the unknown chunin. Sasuke and Naruto had to suppress their smirks while watching their sensei's antics. Ichigo said:

"Keep attention! This part is important. The Hokage in his infinite wisdom had decided that you are worth the time of some of Konoha's finest jonin. Do. Not. Throw away this privilege!" he growled the last worlds.

The genin were actually listening for once. He continued and unsealed the scroll from the Hokage with the final team selections:

"The teams are as following: Team One..."

Sassuke and Naruto were waiting for their turn. It came soon to the surprise of everyone.

"Team Seven: Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki.." Ichigo trailed off glancing at his new student.

Ichigo's students cheered at that. During the last few months, their dislike and rivalry had slowly turned into a grudging friendship. Nothing helps bonding like two manias trying to kill you on daily basis and calling it a training.

"... Haruno Sakura. Jonin-sensei will be Uchiha Ichigo." to his surprise the expected fan-girl squeal did not materialize. She was just grinning madly. Maybe there was hope for the pink haired girl. On the other hand there were a lot of long faces in the crowd. He didn't think that he was that wanted as a sensei.

Ichigo continued to list the teams. No surprises until he reached the end of the list. The Uchiha's lips stretched in a small smile.

"On additional note, Hatake Kakashi will be providing additional training to the various teams. That's all. Stay on the academy grounds, your jonin-sensei's will be meeting you shortly. That's all." He nodded at Sasuke and shunshined away.

Ichigo met his team on the roof of the academy few minutes later. Sasuke and Naruto had finally managed to drag a grumbling Sakura with them. The jonin looked at his young charges with serious expression. You could say that last night's escapades were the final eye opening he needed about this world. His all too short period of somewhat carefree attitude had ended when he was on a vigil over his brother's hospital bed.

"Congratulations! You are a genin now..." he trailed off.

The trio cheered.

"For a week." Ichigo deadpanned.

"Ero-sensei!"

"Nii-san!"

"Sensei!"

Three voices shouted their indignation. Ichigo smirked and continued:

"The academy exam was just to weed out those who stood no chance in the shinobi world. But the real test which decides if you'll remain genin or are returned to the academy will be given by me in a week's time. Meanwhile you'll have to get to know each other and train."

The Uchiha's clan leader eyes bored into Sakuras. She gulped. That was not what she expected!

"Miss Harunto. If you truly wish to be a shinobi and one trained by me, you'll have to clean up your act. This life has no place for fan-girls. Until the true exam you'll be in the capable hands of Anko. She'll make you quit, kill you or if some kind of miracle doesn't happen, make you get your priorities straight in which case you'll have the chance to become a capable kunochi. " he shook his head, watching the gawking girl.

"Well what are you doing still here?! Anko is waiting for you at training ground seven. You really don't want to be late."

The boys nodded frantically at that. Making the kunochi wait made her cranky. And you don't want to be target for her ire. It was much more hazardous for one's health than usual.

**AN: Please review! Next chapter will encompass the real genin test.**

**(No bells, I promise!) and up to and including the land of Waves mission. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto! They belong to their respective owners.**

**AN: This chapter is not proofread. I'll probably post it again when my beta reader is able to check it up.**

* * *

**Bankai!' - thought**

**"Bankai!" - speech**

_**"Bankai!" **_**\- Zanpakuto/demon speech**

**Training ground 7, Konoha**

* * *

For a week Ichigo had to deal with the fallout of the failed attack. Most of his time was spent helping Kakashi remove sensitive documents from the military police archives. And being paraded as a bloody hero. It turned out that he hated to be in the spotlight. At least for now the damned dog and pony show was over and he could deal with his students, who had a really interesting few days.

Wouldn't you know, Ichigo's genins survived a whole week left to the tender mercies of Anko in the forest of Death. He watched from the crown of nearby tree, how the trio was making their way into the training area. They were haggard, with eyes darting in all directions, as if expecting an attack. Sasuke and Naruto were in their usual dark clothes, with tactical vests on their chests. Both had katanas strapped to their backs. No surprise there. Sakura however...

The girl had a resolute look in her eyes, which held no trace of the fan-girl he knew. Her pink hair was cut shorter making it harder to be used as weapon against her. Sakura had two faint scars on her left cheek which were following the contour of her cheek bone. She was wearing a long sleeved shirt and cargo pants in forest camouflage, with dark green vest over them and a tanto on her back. She also had a medical pouch strapped to her right leg. He wondered what Anko had to do to produce such a change in the kid. No, not a kid anymore. Sakura was wearing herself as an young kunochi.

"You survived. Congratulations!" - Ichigo suddenly was behind his young charges, slapping the backs of the boys.

They reacted by instincts honed against the various beasties inhabiting the aptly named part of the forest they had trained in. Naruto spun around kneeling, his foot sweeping in a kick at ground level. Sasuke was also twisting his body to the side, with his katana making a horizontal strike at waist level. Sakura had jumped in the air and launched a wide-spread hail of kunai aiming at the most likely directions where an opponent would have moved in order to avoid her teammates strikes. Ichigo noted that she was slower to react and her aim was a bit off. Still incredible improvement given the timeframe Anko had. His girl was wasted in her present position.

The genins attacks hit Ichigo who was smirking at them. He turned into a flock of kawing ravens which headed to the sky. Sasuke and Naruto cursed under their noses, turning around to see the real Ichigo. Their sensei had embraced Sakura from behind, holding her hands to her body with his left arm and had placed his sheathed katana at her neck.

"Not too shaby." - the Uchiha clan leader said. Then he added: "Still you have a long way to go. So tell me, how was your field trip?"

Sakura blanched, images from the worst week in her life flashing through her mind.

* * *

**Flashback**

**Training ground 44, the Forest of Death - a week ago**

Being a genin, Sakura did not have much choice, but to follow her sensei's orders. That's how she found herself in that never sufficiently accursed forest. Despite what most people thought, there was much more to her than the fan-girl everyone saw. Well, if someone truly paid attention, her academy grades would have attested to that. Even in the worst days of the academy one could not become a kunochi of the year without some genuine skills. However what truly started to change her occurred two months ago, when the Hokage himself had made an appearance and gave a lecture. It was about the true shinobi life, not looked through pink glasses and with sugar-coating over the unpleasant parts. He had given it to the school kids in blunt, easy to understand terms. That let to full half of the students to leave disillusioned and scared shitless. The ones who remained had to take a good look at themselves. And she didn't like what she saw. It was a hard truth to admit, but the best she could do as she was then was to get herself killed in action. So she had taken the mostly ignored until then physical part of the academy lessons and training to heart. The direct result of that was that she soon raised up to the average form of a academy student. Then she continued to train herself, pushing at her limits. Something that was a live saving in this hell hole. They had almost died a dozen times before reaching the tower in the center of this so called training ground. Here their sensei for the week made her home away from home. That woman had got it in for Sakura since day one! She barely picked on one of the boys!

"Ahh! Genin! The ordered entertainment supplies arrived!" - a jubilant voice had exclaimed.

Sakura had felt a stinging sensation on her left cheek, never seeing the kunai which sliced her skin. The sensei for the week turned out to be a blood thirsty sadist to boot. Literally. And her jonin-sensei's girlfriend. The genin wondered if she should pity the bastard or to feel bad for him. An hour of unsuccessful attempts to avoid Anko's attacks and dozens of slashes, scrapes and bruises she had decided! Her bastard of a sensei deserved everything his girlfriend dished out!

By the evening of that first, horrible day, Sakura looked like a mummy. She was covered with enough bandages to keep Konoha's hospital supplied for a week! That night she had a long conversation with the woman about what is to be a kunochi and why she wanted to be one. In the following days, they were talking after the training was finished for the time being (and while Anko was patching her up), and Sakura was slowly becoming to accept that her "crush" was never for the real Sasuke, but for an Ideal of the boy, she had created in her head. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), she did like the New Sasuke, the one in which the boy had turned under the influence of his brother.

About Anko, Sakura was divided. On one hand she had received a crash course on poisons and basic medical training, and the woman had helped her deal with some issues. She had gotten much better at dodging in those few days. Or as the snake mistress had put it:

"You learn these things. Through training or training accidents." - and she had continued to turn Sakura into human pincushion.

That was the flip side. Anko had a thing about causing pain. Sakura had been stabbed, sliced, punched, bitten by that crazy woman's various scaly pets, and almost become the next snack for the various inhabitants of the cursed forest. The result after a week spent in that hell was a much different Sakura. The naive genin who had entered Anko's lair never came back. She could not survive through that "training regiment" and she didnt'. The Sakura who emerged from the Forest of Death was the kunochi who could take all thrown at her and forge forward. In a sense Ichigo's world of the week before were correct. What was left of Sakura's childish illusions had died there along with what most of her innocence.

* * *

**Flashback End**

"So are you ready for the test or will you go straight back to the academy?" - Ichigo asked.

"Ready! " - three voices chorused. After all the training they were made to go through there was no way they were going back to the academy!

"That is the spirit! The test is simple. " - The Uchiha smirked. " Its about the one thing I'll require from you above everything else. "

"Ero-sensei! Tell us already! What's the test!?" - the hyperactive blonde exclaimed. Despite the week's activities, Naruto was still full with energy.

"Why, my little genin. It has already began." - Ichigo's voice thundered. In a blink of an eye he was in front of Naruto and the blonde was flying back after an open palm strike to his chest.

"The usual test is to make sure you understand teamwork. " - as he was saying that, Ichigo was behind his brother, slapping the back of Sasuke's head strong enough to plant his face in the dirt.

"You proved that in the last week. Getting a glowing commendation by Anko is a rare thing."

Sakura who had drawn her tanto, was distracted for a split second by her sensei's words. Since when "You show some promise... for practice dummies. " was considered a positive endorsement?!

Ichigo snaked his arm around Sakura's weapon hand, twisted her limb and made her gasp in pain and drop her blade. He glided around her and pushed her forward, straight into Sasuke who was just getting on his feet. The genins stumbled to the ground in a tangle of limbs.

"I require more from my students."

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" - Naruto screamed from the left and clouds of smoke obscured the training ground. Dozens of clones drew weapons and charged, while the original dashed to his teammates. Ichigo smirked and waded into the small horde of blondes. The first doplegannger was dispelled by a fist to the face. The Uchiha grabbed a second one who was trying to stab him and threw the clone at one of his brethren with enough force to turn them both into puffs of smoke. Compared to him, the bunshins were moving in a slow motion and were falling like a swaths of wheat before a scythe. In seconds, Ichigo was alone with his genin team.

"When you attack you must have the will to strike down your enemy." - The jonin dashed in between his students who had just gotten to their feet. A sweeping kick later and they scattered, Sakura and Naruto substituting with logs. Sasuke blocked his brother's strike with the back of his arms. The force of the impact sent him flying through the air.

"When you defend do not let yourself be hit." - he nodded at the pair who evaded and moved forward, delivering a tight group of punches at his little brother.

Sasuke had a grim expression on his face, his eyes narrowed in concentration. His hands were moving in a blur, deflecting his nii-san's strikes to the side. It was all he could do to keep the punishing fists from connecting with his body. The younger Uchiha fended off another strike, when Ichigo's left hand sneaked around Sasuke's right arm, puling it forward and taking the genin out of balance. The sensei delivered a light (for a jonin that is) tap in the exposed right side his student. Ichigo sidestepped his stumbling brother and tapped him on the top of the head with a fist.

"That was sloppy. You need more practice. Even when you achieve your sharingan, it will not be an excuse or substitute for training. Knowing the moves in your mind is not enough if your body and instincts can't keep up!"

Ichigo smirked. His other two students were sneaking up to him, ready to help Sasuke. He moved while the pair of genin were takin their time.

"When you want to protect someone - you don't let them die." - The Uchihas clan head pulled out his katana and rested its sheathed blade under Sasuke's chin, patting him twice with it.

"You hesitated and so he is dead. "

Moment later, while the students were still processing his words, Ichigo was behind Naruto. The clan leader has used his jonin speed to move faster than the blonde's eyes could follow. He grabbed the Uzumaki and body flickered to the center of the training ground, a clone with struggling Sakura following on his heels. Ichigo released the genin. His face became deadly serious.

"Five minutes. That is how long you have to last against me to pass the test. If one of you is still conscious and in a condition to move by the end of that time, that is."

The genin looked at each other a silver of fear visible in their eyes.

"Begin!" - Ichigo declared and started the chronometer on his watch.

Naruto created a small army of clones and send them in waves while he stood behind and commanded them like a general. Sakura's hands were busy sending kunai and shurikens Ichigo's way and Sasuke was throwing Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique) like there was no tomorrow. The genin had no illusions that they will be able to take out their sensei that way. They were easy prey for Anko and Ichigo was even better. Slowing him down however...

First to fall was Sasuke. Ichigo had no intention to see the training ground burned to ashes. He substituted with a rock which was behind his little brother, left two smoking scrolls on the back of his little brother and replaced himself with a log. Those small slips of paper were something special. He had been surprised that the shinobi did not have an equivalent to the flash-bangs from his original world. So Ichigo had commissioned one of Konoha's few seal crafters to create one. Now it was a good time for a field test.

Sasuke freaked out when heard the hissing coming from his back. He was in the process of stripping his tactical vest when the scrolls detonated. He was stunned by the dual assault of light and sound. That was long enough time for Ichigo to dispatch another wave of clones and to make his way back to Sasuke and take him out with a chop to the back of the neck.

"One down. It's been a bit over a minute." - Ichigo said in a bored tone. He had to use the Kawarimi no Jutsu: Body Replacement Technique a second later, when a vial full with a green liquid shattered where he was standing. Noxious fumes floated over the broken pieces of glass. 'Sakura's been stoked with Anko's best toys it seems.' - the clan head thought.

'Splendid.' He created a Kage Bunshin and sent it to distract Naruto.

"You should be more carefull of your surroundings. " - Ichigo scolded the young kunochi and pointed at Sasuke's insensate form. The poison cloud was being blown his way by light winds. Her eyes widened in horror and she darted to her fallen teammate. Sakura had to plunge through the edges of the poison cloud in order to reach the unconscious genin. She dragged him away to safety, but the venom that had made contact with her skin made her dizzy. She was rummaging through her medicine pouch when the Uchiha clan leader made his way to her and knocked her out. He turned to Naruto who had dealt with his dopleganner by incapacitating it with ninja wire thanks to a distraction provided by his last wave of clones and dispelled it.

"You teammates are down for the count. What will you do? Will you run? Will you give up?" - The Uhciha asked and released a bit of his killing intent.

Naruto froze, his body shaking. Fear was creeping in his heart. Part of him wanted to run and never look back, yet he refused to move his feet knowing that if he make on step back he'll leave his friend and teammate behind. A resolute look crawled up his face :

"I'll die before I ever give up!" - Naruto declared and charged his sensei, creating shadow clones while running at him.

"Good! You can't give into fear in a fight. It is no use." - Ichigo was saying as he was decimating the solid wall of clones who were trying to overwhelm him. The Uchiha got irritated by the endless waves of bunshins he had to deal with so he body flickered behind the copies and engaged their boss. Naruto's taijutsu had improved tremendously in the time since he became Ichigo's student but there were few things that were still holding him back. To Uzumaki's credit, only one was his fault - his habit to charge head on often without well thought plan, something the Uchiha and Anko were working on dealing with. The other two were quite obvious. He was still a young boy so until he grew up more, there was little more to be done for his speed and strength. Despite all the training and weights he was using, Naruto was not a second Rock Lee. His last big weakness was his somewhat undeveloped statute - he was quite short for his age, with corresponding consequences. The effect of years of neglect, malnurishment and abuse simply could not be erased in few short months even when you factor the amazing regenerative powers the fox gave him.

The blonde found himself on the wrong side of a drop kick delivered by his sensei. He was planted in the ground by Ichigo's foot. Naruto promptly substituted himself, before his mentor could kick him again.

Naruto drew four shurikens and threw them at Ichigo.

"Fuuton: Kaiten Shuriken! (Wind Style: Rotating Shuriken)" he shouted. The missiles spun like disks and flew towards Ichigo. The Uchiha knew that the weapons were under Uzumaki's control, having heard the jutsu's name so he did not bother with dodging. A kunai found its way in the Uchiha's hand as if by a magic and with he fenced off the shuriken, which proceeded to scar the ground around him.

"Fuuton: Kami Kaze ! (Wind Style: Divine Wind)" - Ichigo gathered chakra and released it in the form of four pillars of twisting wind. With a wave of his hands he sent the small tornadoes at his blonde student.

"That's not fair!" - Naruto exclaimed while he was chased down by the twisters. He substituted away - another poor log sacrificed for the continuous well being of a ninja. Naruto took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. 'That was too close... ' Naruto heard a whistling sound from behind and spun around with kunai drawn for combat. Why was he so sleepy?! The last thing he saw before his loaded with lead eyelids closed was a smirking Ichigo.

* * *

**Interlude**

Dimensions away, the newly promoted third seat of the Research and Development division of Seireitei was sneezing madly. The blond young genius had the nagging feeling that he had missed on delivering a great speech!

"Urahara! Pay attention! The new prototypes need to be done in less than six months and that's on top of all the stuff we have on the back burner. More working and less daydreaming!" - his lieutenant shouted.

Kisuke grumbled. It was not fair! He had too much other things to worry about and now he had to deal with some experimental armour as well.

* * *

**Back on training ground 7**

Two minutes later, when the time was up, Ichigo brough his genin back to the world of the living. First to came back was Sakura. She shook the sleep away from her eyes and started searching for the antidote.

"That will not be necessary. You were never poisoned. Besides after a week with Anko you are probably immune to it anyway. "

The pink head nodded in understanding. 'Genjutsu. I never noticed it.'

" You did well. However the genjutsu I used on you was a low level one so you should have been able to detect it. We'll be working on that as well as your physical training."

Sasuke and Naruto awoke within seconds of each other. They looked at Ichigo with dread.

"Sasuke, I believe I did mention that just saturating area with fire jutsu and hoping for the best is not a great way to go against a stronger opponent. As you saw, that just made you the target to be eliminate first. We will have some team building exercises in the next few weeks on top of everything else. On theory the attack you three made in the beginning was not too bad. But there was no coordination. Instead of using Naruto's clones to slow me down or confine me in a specific area which then..." - Ichigo looked pointedly at his brother and Sakura , " you burn down and sow with kunai and poison, you did my job for me by taking out a lot of clones. If there is any choice, rushing ahead without a good plan is a foolish thing to do."

A lot of staring in ones feet insured. Naruto asked, crestfallen :

"Sensei, you won't really send us back to the academy, right?" - three pairs of puppy dog eyes hit him head on. The Uchiha smirked. Ichigo had gained a significant resistance to that technique thanks to Yuzu and Karin. Before his fateful meeting with Byakyua, his little sisters had found it harder and harder to twist him around their little finger.

"Drop the bloody kinjutsu. You proved to me that you can work as a team no mater how uncoordinated you might be, and while Sasuke was napping, Sakura and Naruto showed me that they won't quit and will do what is in their power to protect their teammates. So congratulations, you get to stay genin. "

A round of subdued cheering insured. When the students had calmed down Ichigo asked :

"Now, tell me what was the biggest mistake all of you made. And no, I have not mentioned it so far."

Now that she had a bit of time to actually think, Sakura caught on first, proving that she had a good head on her shoulders.

"We should have not fought you at all, Sensei. In essence you said that in order to win one of us had to be able to move after the time limit ended. We should have sent Naruto's clones to slow you down and ran. That was our only chance."

Comprehension dawned on the two boys. Sasuke pointed with accusing finger:

"Nee-san! You were toying with us!" - the tone of Ichigo's younger brother was flush with righteous indignation.

The elder Uchiha showed his trademark smirk:

"I merely made sure that your heads do not become too big. You are a genin. Congratulations again."

The amusement drained out of Ichigo's face as he continued speaking:

"While you are shinobi now, you should not overestimate yourselves. Sasuke and Naruto, you two right now could take apart most of your fellow genin in couple of minutes with few notable exceptions. After a month on the outside Sakura should be able to do that too."

The genin grinned at the praise. For the all five seconds until they realised that Ichigo was trying to make a point and that was not about how great they were.

" However outside of the village that means nothing. Genin are the common foot soldiers of the shinobi world. Just a little better than a cannon fodder. And considering who is on our team the odds of facing just low level ninjas after our first few missions beyond Konoha's walls are next to nothing. Besides engagin into an unnecessary combat is not the best course of action."

He looked at their now glum expressions and shook his head. "But that is a problem for another day. All thinks considered you did good. Get yourselves presentable and we'll go out to celebrate. " - Ichigo finished with a small smile. Naruto's suggestion for celebrating with ramen was promptly outvoted and the newly formed Team 7 headed for one of the Bar&amp;Gril's owned by the Akimichi clan, who were the best cooks in the land of Fire and arguably in the whole of the Elemental nations.

* * *

For the rest of the month the situation in Konoha was relatively calm, with no more incidents. After intensive training for the first two weeks, Ichigo's genin were doing two D - rank missions daily. The idea was to clean up the minimum required before getting their first real assignment. In the Uchihas opinion the D's were useless for even team-building, something he had focused on for the first week and various formations and forms of non - verbal communication during the next. Afterwards his trio had become to look like a real team . Luckily for them all, most of the so called missions were cleared up by clones of Naruto while Ichigo was teaching his students. His other pursuits were going well too. The vineyards had started working, with imported grapes for now, until the extensive fields owned by the Uchiha clan could be restored to their former glory. Even better, Massaini had made some preliminary reports about the armor which were encouraging . The craftsman needed few more people for the private R&amp;D division Ichigo was funding, but he was convinced that they would be able to unlock the secrets of that technology. The rest of the Uchiha's clan leader time was divided between training, Anko and the paperwork needed to keep the clan assets spinning. At least the later could be dealt with by couple of clones. Thanks to his intense training and days spent buried in his clan's archives, Ichigo had finally fully integrated the encyclopedic knowledge given to him by Itachi. That included most of the man's jutsu with which, after a lot of practice, the Uchiha clan head was comfortable with. While he was not yet mastered all of these techniques, they had greatly increased his options in combat.

What ever power had made the body he inhabited in this world had made Ichigo a great favor. He had a great fire affinity with secondary in water and wind. He had concentrated on them, because becoming good enough with jutsu for elements he did not posses was hard, painstaking process. A very long too. Just coping them was not enough to use such techniques effectively. Besides he had his hands full for the foreseeable future. His students had firm grasp of the basics and were about to graduate to the next stage of their training. He smiled fondly at some of the antics his kids had made during their time together.

* * *

**Flashback**

It was a day before Ichigo got Naruto out of the dump, which passed for the blonde's apartment, and transferred him to live with him and his brother in the compound, when his wayward genin failed to appear for their morning run. After asking around the Uchiha had eventually found out where his student lived. To say he was appalled by the condition of the run down place was a massive understatement. The boy was in a desperate need of lessons about how to look after his bloody home. Ichigo had to wade through layers of dirty clothes and empty ramen cups. He found Naruto spawned on the floor of the small bedroom, unable to lift a finger. Around the blonde were discarded etiquettes from weights. Naruto had been pranked by Rock Lee of all people. The boy had loaded Ichigo's student with the same quantity of weight he was using.

Meeting the young green beast on his way here and getting directions from the laughing genin had been a dead giveaway that something was amis, but this was not something the jonin had expected. Ichigo smirked and asked:

"What do we have here? A bit too overzealous are we?"

"Shut up ero-sensei and help me! "

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you'll be eventually able to use all these." - Ichigo nodded at the weights while he was helping his young charge.

"Besides I'm sure that your teammates will love the idea. More weights for them too!" - The Uchiha said cheerfully.

Later that day, during a free for all taijutsu practice, the poor blonde was pummeled in the ground by Sasuke and Sakura. They had not been thrilled by the increased weights and blamed him for that.

* * *

Another day saw Sakura going to the Yamanaka flower shop to try patching up her friendship with Ino who was helping there. Haruno saw Asuma there, who was buying a bouquet and was chatting with her friend.

"She will like them!" - the blonde girl declared with conviction.

"I told you they are not for Kurenai!" - the jonin's denial was transparent.

"Right, right. Bye bye Sensei - san. And give Kurenai my regards when you see her later!" - Ino giggled.

Asuma left the flower shop shaking his head.

"Hi, Ino..." - Sakura muttered.

"What's up forehead?" - the other genin asked.

"Stop already! I just want to talk!" - Sakura exclaimed frustrated. Why was it so hard?!

"Ready to give up on Sasuke - kun?!" - the blonde exclaimed.

Sakura looked away from her childhood friend and wondered: 'Was I that ... shallow?! ' She huffed and glared at Ino.

"You know what?! We'll speak again when Anko-sensei had knocked you out of whatever fantasy world you are living in. Besides as you are now, there is no way Sasuke will spare you a second glance. He hates useless fan-girls! I hope that one day we'll be able to be friends again!" - with those words, Sakura left the presence of the gobsmaked Ino.

Few hours later a still angry Sakura was siting under shadows of a tree in the Uchiha compound and was reading a medical journal while her over-eager teammates were dueling. Their exuberant shouting, on top of the sounds of clashing metal were grating on her nerves. Sakura checked again the page she was reading, to make sure and smiled wickedly. A pair of senbon hit each boy in the chest, taking advantage of their lack of armor. They dropped to the ground without giving a sound. She smiled and continued reading in blessed silence. That was the first time when they thought that she may be someone to fear. The poor sods had no idea what Sakura would become in the coming years under the tutelage of Anko and later Tsunade. Ichigo was watching the stunt she pulled from a nearby rooftop and smirked. The girl was growing splendidly.

* * *

The Uchiha brothers were talking about the past and possible future of their clan and Ichigo was grateful about he ways Sasuke had changed since he got to know him. The self styled "avenger" had mellowed out, a real person behind the mask emerging at last. The younger Uchiha, was a more easy going, sometimes almost cheerfull these days. His fixation on power had abated, now not beyond what was a healthy drive for a shinobi. Most importantly, Ichigo had managed to drive through his little brothers thick skull that there was no easy path to power even with short cut in the form of their dojutsu. Not for what Ichigo dubbed "One's true power" - which was based on training and experience . That was the one feature that in the next few years would make the Uchiha clan leader one of the most feared shinobi in the world. He did not rest on his laurels and was always striving to improve himself, never staying still. After each battle and new encounters he would learn and incorporating new features in his arsenal. And then - training until he was an expert with them. That was something Sasuke had taken to heart.

"So any girls that catch you eye?" - Ichigo teased his little brother.

"Nii-san!" - the youngster exclaimed.

"The question is actually serious. I've managed to get us a two year reprieve on the CRA but after that is an open season for us. I don't know about you, bu I have no intention to be forced into a marriage with women I do not love. So keep you eyes and options open."

Sasuke gulped. He was all to young to deal with that stuff. Stupid adults! Who put them in charge anyway?!

"When the future is concerned we can't overlook the "elephant" in the room. " - Ichigo continued in a grimmer tone.

His younger brother cleared his throat and asked :

"What do you mean? There are no such animals living on the continent, they are on the lands beyond the ocean!"

Ichigo sweatdropped. Yeah, sometimes when he used expressions from his dimension they filed over the heads of the locals...

"Just an expression meaning not to overlook the obvious. Itachi. "

Sasuke's eyes narrowed at the mention of the name.

"What about him?" - he asked suspiciously.

"I met him once you know." - Ichigo waved at his brother to forestall the wave of righteous indignation.

"Neither of us knew who the other one was. Hell at the time I didn't know I was a Uchiha." - he added. The clan leader continued speaking outlining the meeting with Itachi and omitting the real reason for the massacre. He didn't need his brother going on a crusade against Konoha.

Sasuke looked at Ichigo riveted by the story. It was hard for him to accept the image of crying and remorseful Itachi with the one he had met that day. Not with the images in his head which were seared with Tsukuyomi.

"Why did he do it? Why did he kill even the civilians and the children too?"

"Right now I can't answer your firs question, Sasuke. About the second - did he? As I told you it is unlikely he was alone that night. So we need to ask him a few pointed questions when we finally meet our brother. And he will answer!" - Ichigo's voice rang with conviction.

Slowly, very much so, the dimenison traveler had began to accept in his heart that the Uchihas were truly his family. In the beginning Itachi's announcement that he was his ancestor was just that - a bit of information to be sorted up later. But now, when he had months to ponder on it , it became a real thing. The Uchihas, Sasuke in particular were family and he cared for the kid as much as Yuzu and Karin. And he needed to know why the ones not privy to the coup were slaughtered. Itachi had not given him that information so he now had to find it from the man's earlier "version" . 'Damn, if that is even the correct term and tense. I'm too damn sober to even attempt thinking about the consequences of time and dimension travel. And while tinking about that not to forget that the Shinigami king, whoever he is. Its higly unlikely that he made all this possible without having something to gain, and with my luck that is also something I'll have to deal with.' - he thought darkly.

At the same time, in Seireitei a group of shinigami, who had found a great dimension where to test some new weapons and armor felt the temperature in the room where they were having a meeting plunge.

Sasuke pondered his brother's words for a long time. If you look at the whole picture logically it made sense. Ichigo was right. To his surprise, Sasuke felt liberated, like an immense weight was lifted from his shoulders. The shadow put in his mind by Itachi's genjutsu shuddered and shatered, making it easier for the boy to deal with his hatred. Oh, he still intended to have his planned "chat" with Itachi, but now it would occur in much different circumstances - on his and Ichigo's terms. And meanwhile, Sasuke will start living his life instead of brooding over his traitor of a brother parting words.

The youngest Uchiha smiled at his brother and asked :

"Is that all I need to know? If so I'll be going to see Shika and Choji."

Ichigo gave a small smile at the unexpected cheerfulness of his little brother. As if a dark cloud had lifted from the boy. Sasuke looked more... Alive is the correct word. The boy in front of him reminded Ichigo to the one from Itachi's memories before the massacre.

"Yeah." He said and ruffed Sasuke's hair. "Go have some fun."

His little brother nodded and with a genuine smile adoring his face, jumped from the chair he was standing in and ran outside.

* * *

**Yakiniku Ky****ū**** , Konoha**

Ichigo, who was accompanied by Anko, was leading his genin team to a restaurant to celebrate the end of their D- ranks, with the last of the required number done earlier that day. They had left Anko to choose the place (a pointed glare from the snake mistress had silenced any grumbling of protest they had ) . Surprisingly, the group did not end at one of the dango shops. Instead they found themselves in front of a large, two story restaurant. It was filled with multiple booths with green seats and tables allowing their customers a more traditional seating arrangements - on a green cushions. The menus were displayed on placards on the walls. The barbeque was halfway full when they entered. Ichigo's attention was focused on team 10 who were siting in one of the booths, without their sensei. The jonin in question was at the bar, chating amiably with Kurenai. Ichigo raised an eyebrow when he saw the man's bearing and expression. Asuma had it bad for the red eyed kunochi. The Uchiha clan leader smirked and whispered to his girlfriend:

"So we are here to look after Kurenai or did you two arrange a double date?"

She answered him in kind:

"No idea what you are talking about! I just heard that this is a good place and you barbarians did not want to go eat dango!" Anko added the last part with a pout on her face.

Sasuke and Naruto went to their friends with smile on their faces, while Sakura was trailing behind, glancing at Ino. The pinkete was wondering what had happened to her friendship with the blond girl. Asuma looked back at the commotion caused by the genin who were complaining from their woes.

"Hey." - he nodded at Anko and Ichigo.

"Hi!" - Kurenai chirped happily. She dashed forward and grabbed Anko's hand, dragging her away.

"What was that about?" - Ichigo asked bewildened.

"No idea." - he answered.

"How have you been since coming back?" - Ichigo asked, making small talk.

"Surprisingly fine, actually..." - the Hokage's son trailed off and looked at the direction where the women disappeared.

'Yeah, he's got it badly for Kurenai.' - Ichigo thought.

Asuma shrugged and looked at the genin who were getting progressively louder.

"Time to feed them." - he said.

"Yeah, the wildlife is getting restless." - Ichigo deadpanned. Few stern looks was all it took to calm down Ichigo's genin.

Shikamaru looked at him thankfully and went back to napping, while Ino was talking with Sakura, the girls were acting as best friends once again, and Choji was looking at the kitchens. Ichigo smirked at team 10. The poor souls had only a few days ago finished their scheduled poisons and survival training with Anko. To the irritation of said kunochi, the Hokage had found her work with Sakura and the boys of Ichigo's team impressive and had arranged for the rest of the genin cells to receive her attention for a week each . For Inoichi's disgruntement there were even bets among the shinobi in the know, about whether Anko could make Ino into a competent kunochi. Needles to say, the gamblers were avoiding the Yamanaka clan leader as the plague.

While the kids were comparing notes about their shared nemesis , the women returned with smiles on their faces. Kurenai bid them good bye and left, leaving Asuma looking at her retreating form with forlorn eyes. He whispered her name with feeling.

" Man you are in love. This attempt to keep your relationship secret isn't exactly working."

The other shinobi looked crestfallen.

"Is it that obvious?"

"Only when you look at her as she's the most precious thing in the world. And when you say her name that way..." - Ichigo trailed off.

"What way?"

"You two! You know its bad form to discus a lady when she is not around!" - Anko interrupted them, having snuck behind the pair of shinobi. "Especially if her best friend is around!" - she added.

"Only good things, I promise!" - Ichigo said with innocent expression on his face.

"You better! And you... " - she pointed at Asuma, "...if you break her heart I'll introduce you close and personal to my pets!"

After saying her piece, Anko went to seat next to Ichigo. She looked at the menu and groaned. No dango!

The dinner went well after that if you discount the attempted eating competition between Naruto and Choji, which was stopped by a glare from the snake mistress. Sakura and Ino were taking quietly, siting together. The sensei from hell, as the snake mistress was becoming known among the genin had succeeded again into creating a kunochi. Meanwhile the experienced ninjas were chatting about their students progress so far. One of the things they discussed was the future delivery of team 10 into Anko's clutches for a bit of additional survival training, something that had an unintended effect - it got Shikamaru wide awake and trembling. Yeah, not much nap time in the near future of that boy. Asuma looked at Ichigo's genin and shook his head in sympathy. The poor bastards.

* * *

Much later that evening, Anko and Ichigo were laying in his bed, covered with sweat. He was gently gliding his fingers through her hair, enjoying the feeling of it's silky softness. She purred in content and spooned her back against his chest.

" Promise me you'll be careful on your next mission. Please?" - she said, still basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking.

Ichigo softly kissed her shoulder.

" I promise. When did my Anko get mushy on me?"

She chuckled and poked him playfully in the ribs with her elbow.

"You are a bad influence on me. At this rate people will stop being scared at the mention of my name. My reputation will be ruined!"

Ichigo smiled softly at the woman in his embrace.

"We can't have any of that my love."

Ichigo thought about the promise he just made without concern. 'It will be just a C- ranked mission. Nothing we can't handle.' - he really should have known better.

Anko cuddled tighter into her lover's embrace and closed her eyes with content smile. They drifted to sleep in each others arms.

* * *

**Training areas, Uchiha clan compound**

Early next morning Ichigo had gathered his students. They were exited, knowing that today their jonin-sensei would be requesting their first C-rank. The genin were in their now customary attires, loaded with weapons and storage scrolls full with supplies.

"Gang, listen carefully. Before we go to the old man and pester him for interesting mission, I want you to hold one of these." - The Uchiha clan leader gave each of them a square piece of paper.

Sasuke went first. The edges of the paper in his hands wrinkled, before it caught fire and it turned to ashes into the surprised Uchiha's fingers.

"Interesting. You have strong fire affinity as expected and a secondary in lighting. About the second, we'll probably have to hit the archives and also talk to Kakashi. Lightning jutsu are not a speciality of mine." - Ichigo said with a thoughtful expression. The knowledge given to him by Itachi did include much beyond the basics in that respect.

"Hn. " - Sasuke's verbal tick reared it's ugly head.

"Cool! " - Naruto exclaimed, jumping from leg to leg. "I can't wait to see mine!"

Their sensei smirked and gave the next paper piece to Sakura to the blonde's disappointment.

She looked intently as water started dropping from the soaked mess in her hand. Ichigo whistled while she threw away the wet paper.

"Pretty strong water affinity. There are some interesting tricks I can teach you to go with it."

She brightened and smiled.

"Naruto stop bouncing around and come here."

"You got it ero-sensei!" - the blonde snatched the last piece of paper from his sensei's fingers.

"And stop calling me that infernal nick-name!" - Ichigo added. It was not as amusing as it once was.

Naruto's paper was sheared in two with parts of the pieces crumbling to dirt.

"Strong wind and little bit of earth. I and Asuma will be able to help you with your main element. I'll figure something about the earth affinity."

"All I get is some wind and dirt of all things?!" - Naruto pouted disappointed.

Ichigo drew a kunai and threw it at a nearby rock. The weapon buried itself to the hilt.

"Wind is in one of the strongest offensive elements with few applications outside of combat. Earth is a great defensive element with some nasty triks thrown in to spice it up." - the Uchiha clan head said.

"Wow! That's soo cool!" - Naruto exclaimed. "When are we gonna learn new jutsu?"

"Soon. While we are on our mission I'll go over the basics of your affinities and the most common D-rank jutsu and perhaps a few better ones. You need to learn not only when it is an appropriate situation to use a given technique but also when it is an abysmally bad idea to use one. For example, if our own pinkete over here " - Ichigo ruffed said girl hair, " soak everything with a water jutsu, including you two troublemakers, throwing lighting attacks won't be very smart. But if only the enemies had taken the bath, that's entirely different situation. While that is a most obvious example, I hope it makes my point. " - Ichigo explained.

Three heads nodded in unison.

"Now lets go get that mission."

* * *

**Hokage tower, Konoha**

The room where most missions were handled to the shinobi was on the first floor of the village's administrative center - the Hokage tower. It was a vast premises, mostly empty. In the center of the room a table in the form of "П" resided. The old man was at its head, flanked by his advisors. Four chunin were also seated at the table and were dealing with the most of the necessary paperwork. Ichigo entered the room, followed by his team, and headed to the enclosed space made by the table's wings to meet his boss.

"Old man, I believe that my misfits are ready for their first real mission."

Sarutobi tilted his hat of office backwards and smiled at the man in front of him. This Uchiha was one of the best things that happened to Konoha in a long time.

"Ready you say? Just for calling me old I should give you some tedious or unpleasant D-rank." - Hiruzen huffed in a mock aggravation.

A joyful "Mraow!" and a girl's scream could be heard from outside.

"Recapturing Tora for instance." - the old man said , shaking his head with amusement in his eyes.

"That feline had trained how to evade ninjas for decades. Hell, it should be too old to be moving around not to mention all the chaos it is rising. I'm not chasing Nibi's relative again as a D-rank! " - another vexed "Mraow" could be heard accompanied by the sound of breaking glass.

_"Indeed. It's almost as bad as Yoruichi." _\- added the calmer, sane voice in his head.

_"Hey! I'm not Insane! Just a bit restless, ya now!" -_ the other one interjected, hearing Ichigo's thoughts.

'Shut up! and who the hell is Youruichi!?' - Ichigo shouted in his head. No answer came.

"Come one Old-man-Hokage! We are ready!" - Naruto added his two cents with Sasuke and Sakura nodding their heads.

Ichigo bonked the over exited genin over the head.

" Calm down." the Uchiha said to the blonde. "About that mission?" - he looked at the Hokage.

Sarutobi rummaged through a pile of mission request and drew one.

"Hmm. Yes that will do. An escort mission to the land of Waves. You'll have a bridge builder to protect. Great to ease you in the work ." Hiruzen said, adding his last words with a glance to the genin.

"I trust you that they are prepared. Bring the bridge builder in." - The Hokage ordered one of his hidden ANBU.

A minute later man wearing a brown vest stumbled through the door. He took a swing from a bottle of sake and a bit of alcohol leaked from the corner of his mouth, wetting his gray beard. The supposed builder looked at the genin and scoffed:

"What's that - three little boys dressed as a ninja? Is this some kind of joke?!"

"Why you!" - Sakura hissed.

Only Ichigo's fast reaction saved the prospective client from getting a bunch of senbon stuck in various sensitive areas.

"Sakura. We do not attack our clients only for making asses from themselves." - Ichigo chided his female student while he was restraining her.

The gray haired man gulped another swallow of sake and said:

"I'm the master bridge builder Tazuna. I'm building a bridge that will change my county. I need to return there as soon as possible. And I need people who will protect me from bandits even if it cost them their lives."

"Mere bandits?! That's it?" Sasuke looked affronted.

"We can provide you with more than sufficient protection, Tazuna - san. " The Hokage said. Hiruzen continued reassuring the man:

"In this team you have the Uchiha clan leader, the clan heir and two of our most promising genin. "

The bridge builder looked at the brothers and smiled:

"Two Uchihas! Yes, they'll do."

"Hn." - Ichigo imitated his little brother.

* * *

With their gear and supplies already packed in storage scrolls, team 7 were ready to go. Half hour later they were exiting Konoha. When Naruto stepped outside the massive gates, he jumped in the air exited.

"What's up with you?" Sakura asked with concern in her tone. It wouldn't do for her teammate to loose it before their first real mission ever started.

Naruto was smiling widely and bouncing up and down the road. He said:

"It is my first time out of Konoha! Its exiting! I am a real traveler now!"

"I know but you need to calm down, Naruto. We don't need everyone leagues away to know our location. This won't be our last mission outside the village so put a clamp on it." - Ichigo said, ignoring their client's mumbling.

"Move out." - he ordered.

They went down the way, with Tazuna nested in the middle of a triangle made by the genin. Naruto was on point with Sasuke and Sakura on the flanks. Ichigo summoned a flock of ravens and sent his minions on overwatch. He started to quietly lecture his students about the elemental affinities while their eyes were scanning the surrounding foliage.

Sasuke and Ichigo who at that time was in the front, were the first to notice the ambush site. It was a sloppy one. A pair of ninja hidden in a puddle of water in the middle of the road. At high noon during the summer. When it had not rained in a week. The Uchiha clan leader had to suppress his desire to facepalm. He said :

"You know Sasuke, will have to deal with this little problem like with our brother. "

The younger Uchiha nodded in understanding and scratched the back of his neck. His fingers were busy making signs to the pair of genin behind him, which were saying:

"Ambush. Two enemies. Try to take alive."

Sakura and Naruto started a loud banter, vexing their client. Meanwhile, Ichigo was slowly falling back trying to make them quieter.

"One day I'll be the Hokage! Then all of you will admit how great a ninja I am!" Naruto was shouting excitedly.

"Shut up dobe!" Sakura cracked her knuckles and came after him, thus by the time they passed the pool of water, both of them would be between it and Tazuna. Ichigo had no intention to let it go that far. A small ball engraved with seals flew from his right hand and impacted the pool of water before its unfortunate occupants could react. It exploded with flash and thunder. A pillar of water was blown up together with two cloaked forms. They fell to the ground disoriented, a metal chain was hanging between their bodies.

"Gozy and Meizu, the demon brothers. How interesting." - Ichigo said in a bored tone. "Deal with them. I'll need one alive for questioning." the jonin ordered.

The skirmish ended in seconds. Before the chunins could recover from the flash bang, their legs were incapacitated by senbon thrown by Sakura. At the same time Sasuke and Naruto were rushing their respective targets. Ichigo's brother planted shuriken in the shoulders of his chosen opponent, disabling his arms. The Uchiha heir then grabbed the hair of the missing nin and brought it down onto his rising right knee. With a crunch he shattered the man's nose and knocked him unconscious. Naruto made two clones and sent them ahead to grab Gozu's arms. He kicked the man in the solar plexus making him to double over and struck him in the back of the head which was now conveniently exposed.

"Well done. No freezing or messing around. Good technique and no unnecessary flashy movies. Now, lets tie up our guests and you three will be guarding Tazuna while I'll have a chat with those imbeciles." Ichigo said.

"Nod bad dobe."

"Teme."

The boys were back to their old tricks. That was ended by exasperated Sakura who bonked them on the heads with surprising strength.

"Do not slide back to this. It's aggravating." - the girl turned her back to her teammates with a huff and went next to Tazuna, following her sensei's order. The old man had a relieved expression on his face. Now he believed that the Konoha shinobi were up to the task.

* * *

Gozu and Meizu were rudely awakened by the stench of smelting salts. They found themselves tied up securely to a large tree. In front of them was a black haired man clad in dark, segmented armor with a tactical vest on top. He was glaring at them with a cold eyes.

"No matter how incompetently executed, an attempt to attack those precious to me must be addressed." The Uchiha hissed.

They did not correct him and just glared defiantly at their captor.

"Ah, big tough boys aren't you?"

Gozu spat :

"Do your worst leaf! You are all too soft."

"Really? Too bad I need only one of you to talk." - Ichigo said and steeled his heart. His left hand moved faster than the eye could follow and Gozu died. A kunai had struck into his left eye, through his brain and was nailing his corpse to the tree. Meizu froze not believing that his brother was slaughtered just like that. It took seconds for his mind to comprehend what just happened and then he let out a long, haunted scream. A moment later it became shriller, agonised. Ichigo had just stuck a kunai blade over the man's right kneecap and pulled, destroying it. That action crippled Meizu for the rest of his life. The Uchiha had to revive him twice more until he was satisfied that he now had all the answers the man possessed. Ichigo put the chunin out of his agony with a blade to the heart. After that he took the brothers heads and sealed them in storage scrolls and burned down the bodies.

* * *

Ichigo exited the forest with a haunted look in his eyes, that was replaced by a cold one as his gaze reached Tazuna.

"Old man talk. " - the jonin ordered with steel in his voice. "These two were paid to kill you."

Tazuna was transfixed by the man's crimson eyes and spoke the truth. He told to the shinobi how Gato had bought most of their country and was running it as his personal fiefdom, enforcing his will with a mercenary band as his steel fist. The bridge, which was about to connect the island country with the mainland was the only hope for the people of Wave. Unless the construction was completed, they would continue to languish in economic bondage with more and more starving to death thanks to unplayable taxes leveled by the buissenesman.

"Gato as the owner of Gato Industries, on of the wealthiest men on the continent?" Ichigo asked for a confirmation.

Tazuna nodded fearing the worst.

"And you did not have enough money for an assassination mission or one ranked high enough to represent the real challenge of protecting you against a man with such a deep pockets."

Another nod. Ichigo looked at his charged and shook his head.

"First, have you heard of differed payments? And second this is a breach of contract. I probably should terminate the mission and get my genin home." - Ichigo sighted.

"What do you three think?"

"Go. We can't be seen running home at the first snag." Sasuke said.

"Yeah what he said. Besides that Gato sounds as he need his ass kicked." Naruto added.

"Go but call for reinforcements." was Sakura's opinion.

"And the best answer reward goes to Sakura." - Ichigo nodded. "That is our best option beside scrapping the assignment." He hastily wrote a letter to the Hokage and sent it by raven, also adding the scroll with the brothers heads.

* * *

That night they were camping deep in the forest, guarded by small army of Naruto's clones and a flock of ravens as additional alarm. Sasuke was the one to breach the subject the genin were wondering about.

"Nii-san, how can you do it and deal with it?"

Despite understanding the question perfectly Ichigo asked for clarification.

"Do what?"

Sakura exclaimed:

"You tortured those two shinobi!"

"All of you are wondering if you can do it if needed and if you'll be able to live with yourselves afterwards."

They nodded subdued.

"For me those are the wrong questions. Can I live with myself afterwards if I knew I did not do all in my power, no matter how horrendous to protect the people precious to me?! To give them the best fighting chance? Today was torturing and killing two men to gather enough information to know what we had walked into. Tomorrow it will be something else. This is the life of a shinobi. As Anko put it best : A killer's existence full of blood and tears."

_"Too true King. I didn't know ya had it in yourself." - _the distorted voice said.

Ichigo ignored it and continued:

"I can promise you that while I live I'll do everything to protect you. Now get some sleep. I'll be taking first watch."

That night sleep for Ichigo was a long time coming. He dreamt of blood and strange shapes which did not make any sense in the morning.

* * *

**Hokage tower, Konoha**

Sarutobi' work was interrupted by a knock on the window. Another one of Ichigo's ravens was outside, carrying messages. After reading them and thinking over the situation, Hiruzen made his decision and dispatched what he believed to be proper reinforcements.

* * *

**Land of waves**

Four uneventful days later, the subdued group reached the border where a boat was waiting to carry them over. During that time it had become painfully clear that the demon brothers had failed. Gato, their employer, had went to the nominal boss of the pair - one Momochi Zabuza. That man, one of the seven swordsmen of mist, was siting on a sofa in his quarters and pointing his giant weapon at the wealthy businessman. Four of the Gato's new guards had drawn their own weapons and an armed standoff was in progress.

"Your men failed! Why the hell I am paying you for?" - the employer screamed.

"To get the job done. Which I will. " - the demon from the mist deadpanned.

"Fine! But two of my men are going with you! " - Gato nodded at the sound ninja surrounding him.

"That will require more payment. We were hired as bodyguards not, assassins. " the leader of the armored men said.

"Just get it fucking done!" - the magnate screamed again.

**AN: Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto! They belong to their respective owners.**

**This story was proofread by Zanthraxone! **

**'Bankai!' - thought**

**"Bankai!'' - speech**

_**"Bankai!" **_**\- Zanpakuto/demon speech**

* * *

**Border between Land of Fire and Land of Waves**

Mists were everywhere. Even with his dojutsu activated, Ichigo could not see more than a couple of meters in any direction. The sounds of waves and the quiet rowing of the boatman were all that could be heard. The Uchiha clan leader and team 7 were traveling by boat on the last leg of the trek to the Land of Waves. They were moving parallel to the half complete bridge. To the right its outlines could be made as a dark form. The shinobi were quiet, with their eyes and ears straining to sense even the smallest change in their surroundings. Ichigo was aware that after the demon brother's failure the next assassin will be a jonin. That's why the dimension traveler had ordered his genin to fall back and protect the client, when it was time to deal with the next attack. The group reached one of the many small piers scattered around the island nation. It was an extension to a house which was built on wood columns rising from the water. The ninjas and their principal disembarked and Tazuna gave his thanks to boatman for the risk he had taken by smuggling them in the country.

"Now take me home and get me there in one piece." The gray bearded man said and took another swing from his sake bottle. He looked at it with a long face. It was empty damn it! Tazuna spat a curse under his nose and threw the empty bottle in a nearby overflowing trash can.

"Right." Ichigo deadpanned with a expressionless face.

* * *

They walked for hours, at what could be considered a snail's pace for a ninja. Soon after leaving the shore behind, the mists lifted, making way for another hot summer day. It was an idyllic scene, birds singing, squirrels running in the canopies of the trees. All the expected noises of a calm forest were present. To the battle ready genin who were expecting ambush at every turn, it was nerve wracking . Every chirp of a forest animal, a twist of twig or swish of brushes where putting them on edge. Ichigo had half expected that his student's road trip into Anko's forest would have made them more accustomed to the normal wilderness sounds so they at least won't cause them to freak out. 'I should have guessed that the Forest of Death doesn't even sound normal..."

Naruto decided to prove that point as he heard something and threw a kunai in a nearby brush. Ichigo and rest of his team closed around their principal with their weapons drawn.

"What did you see?" the jonin asked.

"Something moved in the shrubs." Naruto said. He smiled and rubbed the back of his head, and added:

"I guess I'm a bit nervous right now. He-he."

Sasuke chuckled. "Dope.", while Sakura was shaking her head, muttering under her nose.

"Let's see what you hit." Ichigo smirked and went into the brushes. Naruto's kunai was stuck in to the bark of a tree. His target turned out to be a big, white rabbit, which had frozen with fright. 'Great, the blonde almost nailed Bugs Bunny.' Ichigo sweatdropped.

_"That near miss makes him one of the more successful hunters of the bloody rabbit!"_ the distorted voice added his two cents.

Ichigo ignored it and smirked at the blonde.

"Well done! You made a bunny pass out! "The Uchiha clan leader said. He frowned "White one at that."

Ichigo's hobby of watching documentaries in his original world turned into a lifesaver. Something clicked in his mind. The animal was in its winter coat. No rabbit in the wilderness would have that color in the summer. It had to be raised indoors. Well there was the possibility that it was just someone's harmless pet but he was not going to bet their lives on it. The bunny could made a good target for replacement techniques, just as he did with his ravens.

* * *

In the branches of a nearby tree, a man known as the Demon of the Mists was watching the Konoha shinobi and his target. His two unwanted companions - sound nin, clad in organic looking armor painted with dark gray camouflage pattern, were hidden in nearby trees. Zabuza scowled at the sight of the jonin leading the genin. Black hair, charcoal eyes and dark segmented armor. The leaf's new Uchiha clan leader who had been making a name for himself in the last five months. And Zabuza's current source of aggravation that man's escapades had caused Gato to hire all those sound shinobi. The Uchiha had been slaughtering the magnates business associates lately, starting with that infamous drug runner in the Land of Fire. 'No wonder the demon brothers disappeared without a trace.' Momochi thought. A muscle at his left hand twitched and his sword flew at the group of enemies.

"Down!" Ichigo shouted not a moment too soon. As they hit the dirt, with Sakura tacking their client to the ground, a giant blade similar to an oversized butchers knife passed over their heads. The sword embedded halfway through a tree on the other side of the road. It was still vibrating from the impact, when a man with bandages wrapped over his face jumped on its hilt. He was shirtless, with a sword belt over his muscular torso. The man was wearing baggy, light blue pants with stripped motive and wrist warmers in the same camo pattern.

The genin of team 7 took position between the assailant and their client and prepared to engage the enemy shinobi with ranged fire. Ichigo stopped them with a gesture.

"Momochi Zabuza. You three are not yet ready to deal with the likes of him. Delta one. "

The Uchiha's students nodded grimly and fell back to the ordered formation. Naruto created a phalanx of clones for support (read cannon fodder) and let them take position between the genin and the missing nin. The masked man looked over the group, which was obscured by a huge cloud of smoke.

"Uchiha Ichigo. You know, part of me always dreaded meeting the Uchiha. Itachi that is. You on the other hand..." The ex mist jonin shook his head. "Give me the bridge builder." Zabuza said in bored tone.

Ichigo's answer was the activation of his sharingan. Zabuza made his way to the river flowing next to the road but before he could reach it the Uchiha was in front of him blocking his path. For a second the ninjas looked at each other and then they exploded in motion. Their blades clashed. All Ichigo could do was to hold his katana in a dead grip, the impact forcing him to his knees. It was not the force of the strike that brought him low, no matter how powerful it was. The moment the blades touched, Ichigo's mind exploded with images and feelings.

* * *

A grass-covered field, stretching for leagues with fresh breeze blowing from the nearby beach. A figure in dark blue kimono with a katana sheathed on its waist. A soft smile of a woman whose face he could not see. A whiff of exotic perfume. A feeling of journey nearing its end. The sense of coming home.

Ichigo was barely able to parry a mighty, two-handed slash. The ring of steel kissing steel echoed around the ninjas.

A blood soaked field covered with corpses. The same figure, blade in hand meeting the charge of ten armored samurai. A burning medieval japanese house.

Zabuza's sword and Ichigo's katana met again and the world froze in place. The substitute shinigami could see everything in front of him staying still. His sight fell to the connected blades, tomoes spinning madly in his crimson eyes.

_"That is similar to what happens when two zanpakutos meet in battle. Their wielders could sense the feeling of the opponent through their blades. We however, are receiving also fragments of memories. And that is disconcerting. This sword does not feel right. It's... almost as an incomplete zanpakuto. "_

''Zangetsu. I was wondering if it was illusion, that time in Massani's shop." 'So you are my zanpakuto.' the Uchiha thought.

_"Not illusion. You did hear my name."_ The spirit said with hint of a pride in his voice.

''Then who is the other one I'm hearing?'' Ichigo wondered.

_"Why, It's me King!"_ The distorted voice exclaimed offended.

"And who the hell are you?" Ichigo asked pointedly, clearly not amused.

_"Uh, huh. I don't have a name. It's just me!"_ came the unhelpful answer.

"Any idea how to deal with this? I'll and the kids will get killed if this continues."

_"Steel your heart and concentrate. Block the connection." _Zangetsu suggested.

_"Embrace your instincts and use them. It will make this distraction irrelevant."_ added the other.

Ichigo felt like frowning but his frozen facial muscles were not cooperating.

''And how the hell I do any of that?!''

_"Enjoy your fights! Let go of the leash you have put on yourself ever since that first mission! Open your heart and accept what you are!"_ The distorted voice said.

"If I do that I'll become a beast, just another common murderer!" The substitute shinigami shouted in his head.

_"Ichigo, you fear the power you are acquiring as a shinobi. I know. I am the one who knows you better than yourself. Let go of your fear. Move forward and never look back. The past is gone. Live for the future. Hesitate again and you will die."_ Zangetsu declared with solemn voice.

"_You heard the stiff old man, King! Let me put it a way I hope you'll understand. In this world you have to bathe in your enemies blood to have a chance to protect those precious to you. That is your purpose after all, right? Well, thanks to our cursed eyes, the path of carnage is the only one acceptable left. Unless you want to see those you care about dead or worse? You made some pretty speeches to the brats, but you are failing to follow your own advice. Answer now, King. Who is Uchiha Ichigo?"_

Images flashed in front of Ichigo's eyes. Yuzu, Karin, Sasuke and even a much younger visage of Itachi.

_"A brother."_

Anko, smiling at him with love in her eyes, her precious dango forgotten.

_"A man in love."_

As Kurosaki Isshin attacking him with a drop kick, early in the morning. 'Goat-chin' Ichigo though.

_"A son."_

A row upon row of men, women and children watching him with expectation. The faces of his clansmen, looking him, waiting to see, what he will do with their legacy.

_"An Uchiha."_

Rapid series of image from his time in this world. Kurenai, Hurizen, Anko and all the other Konoha shinobi he had met. His trio of genin. He smiled fondly at the memory of his first few somewhat carefree weeks.

_"A shinobi of Konoha. A sensei."_

His friends images danced in front of his eyes, both from here and back in Japan.

_"A loyal friend."_

He saw himself, towering over Rukia's smaller form. Her oh, so cold, blade piercing his heart. The first hollow he took out, followed by all the others. The challenge by Ishida and that Menos Grande. His futile attempt to save Rukia from that pair of soul reapers.

"A subs-..." Ichigo's words were interrupted by thunderous voice which shook the ground.

**" A Shinigami. One of my own. Now go forward Uchiha Ichigo."**

"_Do you understand now, Ichigo?" Zangetsu asked. "Ninja, clan leader, killer. Those are just that - labels, masks. They are *what * you are. And all those things you now said are *who* you are. The person behind the mask, the one found in the depths of your heart."_

Small smile could be seen in the corners of Ichigo's mouth. He could feel the last pieces of the puzzle that was Kurosaki Ichigo and Uchiha Ichigo click into place. It was acceptance. The substitute shinigami from Karakura town and the shinobi from the Elemental nations finally fusing in one whole person. A ninja of Konoha. A shinigami.

* * *

**Interlude**

One of the most powerful beings in existence was looking through a tear in reality in front of him. The Spirit King's eyes tightened, his iron mask slipping into a small smile. It worked! His forlorn hope now had a chance! The soul of Kurosaki Ichigo was at last firmly anchoring the young shinigami hybrid to that dimension. The two figures flanking the King nodded in acceptance. Ichigo had made the decision to accept his new position in that world with both heart and mind, on his own free will. The Shinigami King's gamble would not be erased. The new timeline will be left to develop, for better or worse. And the Spirit King will have to pay a steep price for his interference in the domains of the other two deities. He'll be watched, his hands bound. When centuries after the current moment, one of his shinigami captains lead a rebellion, the King and his personal guards will not be allowed to act. The one who will be/was known as Sosuke Aizen, will have the free reign to plan and execute his treason. And the Spirit King will have to watch as his precious Seireitei is torn asunder by one of their own. But at this time a possibility for different future was born. Ichigo has declared himself as a shinigami. The first one in the world of the Elemental nations. It was a subtle thing. It made little practical difference for the young man at this time. Yet he had become a wild card not bound by fate or the whims of irate deities. The fabric of reality shifted subtly in a way which would remain unnoticed by the higher powers for the near future.

* * *

**A river bank in the Land of Waves**

The moment which was frozen like an insect in a drop of amber, shattered like a piece of glass. Impression of feelings waved over Ichigo, smashing into his steeled heart. The expected flashes of memories did not disrupt his concentration. He was down on one knee, his left hand on the back of his katana, helping him stop Zabuza's strike. The next attack by the missing nin passed through already dissolving illusion.

Team 7 were watching with concern how the assassin's first strikes were pushing back their sensei and overwhelming his defense. Then Ichigo was nowhere in sight, disappearing with the help of a genjutsu. The genin scattered leaving in their wake deep slices in the ground. Thin blades made of compressed sound waves had reaped their way through Naruto's army, to strike at the real targets beyond the clones. A frightened Tazuna was still unhurt. The civilian was being carried by a pair of bunshins, who were responsible for keeping him away from unexpected attackers. Two enemy shinobi had appeared seconds after Ichigo was engaged. Their armored bulks dashing towards the target and the trio standing in their way. Sasuke and Naruto draw their blades and rushed to meet the charging sound ninjas, leaving Sakura and the remaining clones to protect their principal. The young Uchiha met the shinobi on the right. Sasuke jumped over a sound attack aimed with the intent to disembowel him. He gripped his katana in both hands and slung it down trying to bisect his opponent. The blade struck the crossed arm guards of the man leaving a deep gash in the metal. The armored ninja had to make a step back under the force of the hit. He promptly recovered and pushed the blade away with the back of armored gauntlet. The sound nin made a step forward and kneeled Sasuke in the side, bruising his ribs. The genin stumbled to the right from the blow.

At the same time, Naruto had sent a quartet of clones ahead. He calmly watched them puff out after taking strikes by his adversary. Despite the armor the enemy shinobi was fast.

"Fuuton: Sensougouheki! (Wind Style: Rumbling wind wall)" The blonde shouted and tore into the would be assassin.

The man's armored fists were slowed down or deflected by a wall of wind, while Naruto's slashes were defeated by the armor, leaving small scratches in its surface. The sound ninja unleashed a point black attack from a device hidden in the bulk of his right arm guard. The sound wave overpowered Uzumaki's defensive jutsu and took him in the left shoulder. The whiskered genin was lucky, the strike was blunted by the wind wall and only left a big bruise .

Sasuke turned with the strike he had received. Ichigo's brother groaned in pain as he jumped to the ground avoid a blast of sound. He got back on his feet and prepared for the next exchange. The sound nin was upon him a moment later, attacking him with coordinated taijutsu strikes and blasts of sound. Sasuke deftly blocked the fast punches and kicks. He glided around the jutsus shot by the man with the sound waves passing him by hair breaths.

Naruto found himself on the ground, spitting blood. A lucky strike had slipped through his defenses and the sound nin had blasted his chest with another of those damned jutsus. The blonde coughed more blood and stood up on unsteady legs. Whatever that attack was it had messed up his balance and made it hard to breathe.

So far, Ichigo was able to keep Zabuza out of the river and the lake it was flowing in. He knew better than to engage a Mist shinobi on a body of the liquid. They were engaged in an intricate dance of death. Their swords met, showering their welders in explosions of sparks. Ichigo blocked a diagonal slash and used the momentum of the strike to spin around and kick at Momochi's head. The missing nin, twisted like a bow - the feet flying harmlessly in front of his face. Ichigo who was out of balance after he missed, had to jump over the returning Kubikiribōchō and hit the ground hard.

Momochi did not use his brief advantage to attack again. The missing nin dashed to the water, where he sheathed his sword. Zabuza made a quick series of hand signs while spiking his chakra.

"Kirigakure No Jutsu! (Hidden Mist technique)" Zabuza melted from sight into a thick mist, which proceeded to envelop everyone in the vicinity. As it became progressively thicker, the line of sight of the combatants fast decreased. The reduced visibility stopped the battle for a moment and gave time to team 7 to catch their breaths.

"Eight points. Larynx, spine..." - the Demon from the Mists started saying.

"Fuuton: Daitoppa! (Wind Style: Great Break Through) "Ichigo's voice echoed on the winds. He performed the technique twice, with moderate amount of chakra, making it just strong enough to blow away the mist and leave his team and client unharmed.

"Bastard!" Zabuza shouted.

"What? You really thought that I'll let you to fight me on a battlefield of you own choice?" Ichigo deadpanned. The Uchiha clan leader could be seen at Momochi's back with katana in a position showing it have just delivered a strike. Zabuza's form was sliced from right shoulder to left hip. It fell to the ground, turning to water in the process. Then the missing nin was behind the konoha jonin. His giant sword cut him through the waist. Zabuza cursed because he felt no resistance as he bisected Ichigo. As the illusion was faling apart, Momochi raced to spin around and interpose Kubikiribōchō behind his open back and the Uchiha. It was a logical course of action. His only other alternative was to substitute with something on the shore and lose his small advantage.

Eighty percent of surprise attacks come from the back, making the missing nin's defensive maneuver a good bet. However, this one did not. Ichigo's blade singed through the air and connected with Zabuza's head. The man from Mist puffed away, replaced by a log. He acted just in time. His head protector had a deep diagonal gash. It was what saved Momochi from losing a piece of his skull and gave him the extra split second needed to substitute.

* * *

While the two swordsmen fought, Naruto and Sasuke had reengaged the sound nin. The blonde was using waves of clones to distract his enemy and was stayed behind, studying the ninja for any weakness. Sasuke was clashing with his chosen opponent, continuing the test between blade and armor. His katana however was a standard shinobi weapon, not meant to defeat such protection. Sasuke moved in closer, discarding his less than useful sword. He deflected two fist hits to the side of his body and delivered an open palmed strike at the armored man's gut. Then he used a Kawarimi to get away. Short time earlier, while in the embrace of Zabuza's mists, the younger Uchiha had pawned an explosive note in his left sleeve. Now it was stuck to the man's armor with a less than a second left on the lit up fuse. Sasuke had moved barely far enough when the sound nin was blown back as if hit by giant's fist. He flew through the air, propelled by the explosion. The sound nin hit with a crunch and bounced from a old, big tree and crashed on the ground, skipping over the dirt. His form stayed still for few moments and amazingly enough he tried to stand up. His armor had somehow held most of the explosion's force and was scorched but intact. The same could not be said for the ninja in it, who had multiple internal injuries. Sasuke did not give him time to recover.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)" The black haired genin performed his clan's signature technique. He expelled a long tongue of flame from his mouth, not so different from a flamethrower. The dying ninja was cooked in his armor.

Naruto, who was still recovering from an earlier sound attack, had to sent more and more clones into the fray. He could feel the injuries inside his body flaring in pain with every movement. Uzumaki was falling back as his bunshins were hastily decimated. A kunai whistled through the air and imbedded in the ground, next to his feet.

"Use it!" shouted Sakura, who was keenly watching the battles.

Naruto glanced down and saw a storage scroll tied up to the weapons handle. He hastily picked it up and dodged to the left as a sound blast landed where he had been. The blonde promptly unsealed the scroll and retrieved a glass vial full with clear liquid. He covered his action from sight with another wave of clones. When the last of the copies was being turned into smoke, the vial passed through the cloud and shattered on the sound shinobi chest. The liquid splashed all over the armor emanating acrid smell. With a hiss the acid started eating at the metal. Panicked, the man tried to pry his chest plate away. Meanwhile, Naruto calmly moved towards the struggling man. His katana punched through the weakened chest piece and buried its tip in the man's heart.

* * *

Zabuza, who had continued his duel with Ichigo on the shore, had a great view at the demise of his so called backup.

"Those are genin?" the demon from the mists growled.

"Two months out of the academy." The jonin-sensei confirmed proudly.

Zabuza looked impressed.

"So you managed to turn them into ninjas without the idiotism demonstrated by the Village Hidden in the Bloody Mists, eh?"

Ichigo nodded as they separated after a quick exchange of strikes.

"The infamous genin graduation test in Mist..." Ichigo trailed off. His face had turned into a mask showing his disgust.

Team 7, who had returned to the defensive formation around Tazuna were listening to the exchange.

"What test? We had to survive the crazy snake lady for a whole Kami-sama damned week!" Naruto exclaimed affronted. His teammates nodded in sympathy.

"Did you? Did you have to slaughter your way through your fellow graduates? Imagine it! Studying, training and eating together and on the last day the rules suddenly changed! Your friends, those you shared your drams with were to be your enemies. Could you do it?"

"Never!" Sasuke declared, nodding at his brother. "I will not betray my friends!" His fellow genin nodded grimly in agreement.

Ichigo smirked. The kids had learned.

"How goes the story? It was about a decade ago, right?" The Uchiha clan leader asked.

"I slaughtered a year's worth of graduates." Zabuza declared. "They changed the exam afterwards."

Team 7 looked at him with horror and Ichigo glared at the man. Zabuza only shrugged.

"What? The bastards were picking up on my friend Yagura! Besides it felt so good!"

"The Mizukage? That Yagura? The one you tried to assassinate recently?" Ichigo felt like face-palming.

Zabuza looked uncomfortable.

"He went crazy! I had to stop him!" He mumbled hastily. Momochi jumped back and created a pair of water clones, who he sent at Ichigo as distraction. The copies lasted for two whole seconds, all the time the Uchiha needed to move between them. He impaled one and drove a kunai between the ribs of the second, before they could finish their first swing. As they fell in puddles of water, Zabuza was standing on the surface of the lake. He started making hand signs.

Ichigo watched him, copying the jutsu while he was preparing his counter technique. The Uchiha was spiking his chakra tremendously, making it almost visible to the naked eye. It manifested in a swirl of winds around his body.

"Suiton: Suiryuudan! (Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu)" Zabuza shouted the name of his attack. A big pillar of water rose from the surface of the lake. It reformed into a Chinese style dragon. Its serpentine body coiled around Momochi and with tremendous speed hurled itself at the Uchiha.

"Fuuton: Atsugai! (Wind Style: Pressure Damage)" Ichigo calmly stated the name of his counter. A huge blast of wind swept away the dragon, turning it in fine mist. The force of the attack shattered the ground in front of the Uchiha, blowing pieces of dirt and rock into the lake. The wind scoured the water mass, sending meters long waves in a semicircle from the place it hit. The water pushed by the pressure returned with a vengeance, sending even higher tidal wave at the shore. The gening grabbed Tazuna and jumped over the rushing water and landed in the branches of a ancient tree.

Ichigo could see the form of Zabuza who had evaded the brunt of the attack. Even so, the demon's left hand hanged uselessly, twisted and broken. The Uchiha drew his katana, ready to put an end to this fight. Two senbon screamed through the air and embedded deeply into Zabuza's neck. The man toppled over, Dead. Ichigo's sharingan could see Zabuza's chakra network shutting down. The Konoha jonin glanced at the source of the attack. A Kiki hunter kunochi was up in the branches of a nearby tree. She gave Ichigo a small bow.

"I've been after Zabuza for a long time. Thanks to his friends" she nodded at the corpses of the pair of Sound nin, "I was unable to deal with him. You have my thanks."

"Who is she?" Sakura asked. The pink haired girl was looking suspiciously at the newcomer. Something felt off to her.

Ichigo, was kneeling next to the body of Momochi and was checking for pulse, answered:

"A hunter nin from Mist. Their job is to track missing ninja and dispose of them. Ever from a corpse a lot can be learned about training methods, equipment and blood limits. Not to mention whatever sensitive information the fugitives may have on them."

"Correct, Uchiha-san." she nodded. "I'll be taking those two." she waved at Kubikiribōchō and its wielder.

"I'm afraid I'll be keeping the sword. It's quite interesting. You can have the mummy."

The hunter froze. She sent a flight of senbon at Ichigo, who was forced to jump back. The Mist kunochi grabbed Zabuza and his blade and vanished in a swirl of water.

"Damn! I knew it! She put him in a near dead condition! There were no killing spots where the senbon hit!" Sakura exclaimed finally understanding what was bugging her.

"So it seems. Still, considering his arm, we should have at least a week before his next visit. Provided he has access to a competent medic nin. Meanwhile I'll have to teach you few appropriate jutsu to deal with heavy armor. And let's hope the reinforcements are here soon." Team 7's sensei said. He gave a small proud smile at his genin.

"You did well." The kids preened at the praise.

* * *

**Interlude**

**R&amp;D Institute, Seireitei**

Urahara was sitting at his desk with his head buried into a pile of papers. He had a small grin on his face and his eyes were busy roving over the plans for an idea behind the schematics he was looking at was fascinating. The armor was supposed to draw Reiatsu from its wearer, enhance it and use the spiritual power to make the person it protected faster and stronger. The metal it was supposed to be made from should also absorb some of the energy and gave the armored suit a moderate protection against zanpakuto and kido attacks, something thought impossible for ordinary physical object, even one made by reishi. After all the reason shinigami did not wear armor aside one gained by shikai or bankai release was that doing so was pointless. Until now. Provided that he could make this concept a reality.

"Kisuke!" A cheerful voice brought the blond man back to the real world.

He looked at the young purple haired woman who had barged in his sanctuary and smiled. Lady Yoruichi was positively radiant in her royal purple kimono. The Second division captain had a mischievous grin on her beautiful face.

"I have a proposition for you!" she purred like a cat that had just caught a particularly tasty canary.

* * *

**Land of Waves, Same evening**

Six hours after the second failed assassination attempt, Tazuna and his escorts reached the bridge builder's home. They were a subdued group. Sasuke and Naruto who had high spirits after their victory were now appalled by the realization that they had made their first kills. The kids were so far holding it together and Ichigo was wondering what to do to help them cope.

"Dad!"

A dark haired blur tackled Tazuna and almost get herself few extra pounds of metal in the process. Only Ichigo's signal prevented the genin from overreacting and sending kunai and senbon her way.

Soon the young woman calmed down after seeing that her father was unharmed and in one piece. She promptly composed herself and after brief introductions invited them in the house.

"Sakura, help Tsunami with finishing the cooking and setting the table. Naruto set clones on patrol and perimeter watch, Sasuke and I will be checking the surrounding area."

The brothers vanished at ninja speeds, leaving Naruto to organize couple of dozen clones into guard squads. Sakura huffed quietly and followed their hostess to the kitchen. About half hour later the Uchiha's returned from their scouting and gave the right countersigns to the groups of clones acting as guards. Soon they washed themselves and were seated around a long table while Tsunami and Sakura were finishing serving the dinner. Tazuna's kid looked at ease, much more comfortable than expected when surrounded by bunch of shinobi. Obviously sending Sakura with her had helped in cushioning the fear from ninjas that most civilians had.

* * *

**Zabuza's safe house, Land of Waves, same time**

Haku was working on putting back together her mentor's broken arm. While he should recover within the week from the near dead state she was forced to put him in, the shattered bones would take couple of months to heal despite her best efforts. And after that it will be at least few weeks until his arm would be as strong and agile as before the injury. Meanwhile Zabuza was glaring at the ceiling. A thoughtful expression was hidden under the bandages covering his face. He had gotten extremely lucky. The fucking Uchiha had not gone all out, probably because he had feared that

using more destructive techniques could harm his client and team. Not that strictly speaking the Konoha nin had needed more powerful jutsu. With that freaking cursed eyes of his it was just a matter of time before he would have won anyway. So now he had to decide how to extract himself from this Kami - forsaken country before Gato found out that he was crippled for the foreseeable future and send some of the sound nin to take him out as an example. Momochi stared at Haku with his features schooled into an iron mask and wondered about his next course of action.

* * *

**Gato's Headquarters, Land of Waves, later that evening**

"I see." muttered Gato. The magnate was sitting in a comfortable chair behind his documents covered desk. He could not say that the newest failure of the self styled demon of the mist was a surprise. The only reason he had hired the missing nin was because he was cheap and disposable, not like the shinobi belonging to one of the villages...

The small man finished his cup of sake and looked at the shinobi who had just reported the outcome of the skirmish between Zabuza and the Knoha ninjas guarding that never sufficiently damned bridge builder. Why people can't just fall in line and let him concentrate on making profit instead of having to deal with accursed shinobi and other assorted cutthroats?!

Gato looked darkly at the armored ninja who was commanding his on duty detachment of bodyguards.

"Your boss got lucky. Tell him that he can have the money we talked about. Just deal with that pest. Oh, yeah. Find and dispose of Zabuza. If you can bring me that bitch who hangs with him alive you'll get a bonus."

The sound shinobi nodded and disappeared. Gato groaned at the thought of the additional expenses and grabbed the half opened bottle of sake which was on his desk. He disregarded his empty cup and brought the bottle to his lips. 'Damn all shinobi to hell!' he thought.

He put back the bottle and buried himself in the paperwork necessary for running his vast legal and illegal business.

* * *

**On the border between the Land of Fire and Land of Waves, that night**

The reinforcements for Team 7 were moving stealthily through the forest. The reason for that was the feeling they had that someone was following them shortly after they had left Konoha. The group consisted of Uzuki Yūgao and her ANBU team with the addition of Anko. The group was dispatched the moment a special forces squad was free for the mission. After all, no matter what the official position of the Hokage about Ichigo's team had to be, there were political realities with which he had to deal with. That's why instead of promptly dispatching another genin team and their sensei he had waited a day and sent the first available ANBU squad. After all you do not get often a team with a clan leader and his brother (not to mention that currently they were the whole bloody Uchiha clan), the village's junjuriki and the kid of one of the civilian councilors.

Anko and Yūgao looked at each other. Their attempts to loose or ambush their mysterious tail had so far failed. The reinforcing group of shinobi were reluctant to lead their unknown pursuers straight to Ichigo's team. Considering the skill needed to track and evade an ANBU squad, leading whoever was behind them to a bunch of genin was very bad idea. That was the reason the Konoha shinobi were skulking in the dark and hoping to force confrontation with their pursuers. This was the third time they were trying to pull it off. And for better or worse they succeeded.

Tortoise, the ANBU who was at the back of the shinobi formation sensed something and moved on instinct before his brain was able to consciously process the information. That saved his life as he substituted with a nearby branch as a bunch of kunai struck his previous position. That was the extent of his luck for he appeared between two figures cloaked in shadows. What followed was a brief and brutal close combat struggle. Tortoise struck the figure on the left with his elbow, managing to hit that person's diaphragm and thus buying precious moments. His left hand, which was gripping a kunai darted towards the other stranger's belly but it was blocked short of its target. The ANBU man moved his right leg to stop a knee aimed at his crotch and grunted when the attack hit his thigh. He knew that he was running out of time and that the other ninja was about to attack him from behind. From the quiet sounds of battle he could hear around him he knew that there was no one coming to his aid.

Tortoise could sense the man behind him moving, ready to strike. He tried to substitute with something nearby but his left arm was caught in a vise like grip. He cursed quietly while parrying a kunai which tried to gut him. He was out of time. 'Time. Interesting thing.' he thought. It slowed down to a crawl and he could see the outcome with crystal clearness. He won't be able to dispatch the bastard that was grappling his hand before his budy finished him. The rest of the squad had problems themselves, so no help there. That made his choices simple.

The shinobi in front of him struck again with his kunai and was surprised when the attack was not blocked. His weapon buried between the Knonha's nin ribs and sliced his right lung. But the opening was deliberate. Tortoise knew that he was dead anyway. So he let his enemy strike, which left the bastard open. The ANBU last act was to bury the kunai in his right hand in the throat of one of his killers. It was not a moment too soon because he felt a pain flare in the back of his neck and knew no more. The corpse of the loyal Konoha ninja fell dead to the ground with a blade severing his spine. The last conscious thought Tortoise had was about how familiar was the mask of the man he killed.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto! They belong to their respective owners.**

**This story was proofread by Zanthraxone!**

**'Bankai!' - thought**

**"Bankai!'' - speech**

**_"Bankai!" _****\- Zanpakuto/demon speech**

* * *

**On the border between the Land of Fire and Land of Waves**

'Well, at least the game of cat and mouse is over.' Yūgao thought. Though considering who was trying to wipe her squad out that was a meaningless consideration. As the vice-commander of the whole Konoha ANBU division, the fact that the attackers were two units of their own had terrifying implications. To make things worse, those were not the ROOT fuckers who were Danzo's fanatical followers. Oh, not at all. The bastards that were trying to kill her were supposedly loyal Konoha troops. Hell, the two who were attacking her now were Rabbit and Deer, and she had trained with those bastards just a week ago! The only silver lining in this nightmarish situation was that if the Hokage had ordered the attack, the old man would have sent more men.

"Crescent moon dance!" Uzuki whispered. Two shadow clones, she had created second ago, charged at Deer from the sides fast enough to leave a blurred after image in their wakes. She jumped in the air and smiled under her mask. This was one of her signature abilities, something those traitors were familiar with and expecting. So she improvised. While the bunshins had Deer's undivided attention, she shot her left leg at a thick branch from a nearby tree and somersaulted through the air. She vaulted over Rabbit who had tried to cut her down from the back. Instead, on her way to the ground, Neco found herself in ideal position to counter-attack. She made a two handed slash and her katana caught the traitor on the right side of the neck. The blade cut through flesh and bones and exited under the man's left armpit. The two pieces of the corpse fell to the ground, splashing Yūgao with hot blood.

Far to the right, the night was lit up by lightning. An agonizing scream was drowned by thunder and Neko allowed herself a sigh of relief. Rok, possibly the man with the most powerful lighting affinity in Konoha had taken down another of the bastards. She returned her attention at Deer, who had survived the assault by the clones unharmed. She charged at him fast enough to leave a trail of after images behind.

Anko was engaging an ANBU with a Squirrel mask of all things. Behind her, the second man who had tried to ambush her had run afoul of one of her summons. The man whimpered as a giant anaconda, had bitten his head, shattering the pig mask he was wearing and was busy coiling around the unfortunate shinobi. Soon the sound of bones snapping like twigs could be heard. Miratashi smiled maliciously at her opponent. She could feel his fear as he glanced behind her, where her summon was busy eating the other bastard. Anko used the momentary distraction and attacked viciously. She backed him against the trunk of a tall tree and proceeded to rain strikes in tight groups aimed at vital points on his torso. His frantic defenses soon proved insufficient and she slipped a kunai through his guard. However instead of puncturing his right lung, her weapon nailed a branch to the tree. Immediately she twisted her upper body and her right arm snapped up to parry a tanto lunge aimed at the back of her skull. Her position and the angle of attack were such that she stumbled backwards losing her balance. She was falling gracelessly but that did not stop her from extending her now free left arm and sending a pair of reptiles at the Squirrel. The first of the shadow snakes clamped its jaws around the tanto of the man. The other was aiming at his neck so the ANBU was forced to bring up his left hand to protect his vital area. He grunted in pain as a pair of needle sharp teeth pierced his flesh and started pumping poison in his veins. In seconds he lost all feelings in that arm. Squirrel let go of his tanto and the reptile latched to it and grabbed an explosive note from one of his pockets. Before the ANBU could light it up, another two shadow snakes hit him. One latched at his hand holding the note and there was nothing stopping the other from reaching his neck. Seconds later he gurgled and fell to the grass covered ground filled with enough poison to kill a small army.

Meanwhile, the last member of Yūgao's unit, a man with panther mask had already dealt with one of his attackers. He was a temporal replacement for Bear, who was in the hospital after the squad's last mission. If someone paid close attention, a pair of featureless, pale eyes cold be seen peeking from behind the mask. He also had a long, black hair, braided behind his back, something one doesn't see often amongst ANBU members.

Moment before the attacks began, Panther had moved against the closest of the men stalking him and reversed the ambush on the would be assassin. That man was caught out of position. He had multiple kunai in his hands, which were extended over his head in preparation to send the weapons at his target. Instead he found himself totally open when said target moved in a blink of an eye more than fifteen meters and was already delivering a palm strike when the rogue ANBU's senses registered that there was something wrong. Then he was crumbling to the ground as liquid fire raced through the chakra pathways around his heart. The unsuccessful killer's brain was slow on the uptake that he was already dead.

His prompt actions left Panther with just one enemy in the immediate vicinity. As far as he could tell, anyway. Considering that he possessed one of the most potent Byakugan in the clan, the fact that he was unable to see those men until they were almost upon him was deeply disturbing. He, as well as the rest of the unit knew that someone was following them for days, but for those bastards to be able to hide from his sight so effectively... He shrugged his shoulders. Deal with the threat first, ask questions later. He couldn't count on surprise against the second rogue ANBU. Not that he really needed it... Loyalist and traitor charged at each other. When the rogue was a meter from him, Panther released a high speed palm trust at his enemy. That was the Hakke Kusho, the Eight Triagrams Vacuum palm technique. It formed what could be best described as a vacuum shell produced with chakra manipulated by the Gentle Fist. It was aimed at vial point of choice on the target, while a slightly slower moving pulse of chakra followed and blew backwards the target. In this instance, the attack shattered the breast bone of the rogue and not only pulverized the flesh behind it but also sent bone fragments through the man's lungs and heart. That one was landed meters away and laid still.

At the same time Panther's eyes tightened as he watched as Tortoise died taking one of his attackers to the grave. He moved to intercept his brother in arms killer and saw with satisfaction how Yūgao and Anko promptly dispatched one of their attackers and engaged the other. Moment later, Rok fried one of the men engaging him and faced the second one. Panther concentrated on his prey and decided to take this one alive.

Yūgao dueled with Otter, using the longer reach of her katana to keep him at a safe distance. Her attacks were fast and vicious enough that the traitor had no time to make even a single hand-sign. She engaged him in a complex series of attacks and feints which culminated into a swift and brutal whirlwind of clashing steel. One moment she had been fencing with the rogue, or at least been as close to it as possible with a weapon like hers, and in the next she had shifted tactics and caught him off guard. Her heavier blade battered his tanto to the right and left him wide open. Yūgao then kicked him in the left knee. The traitor stumbled, losing his balance for a second. She used this distraction to reverse the grip on her katana and brought her weapon in a diagonal upward swing which opened him from hip to shoulder.

Rok was enjoying the skirmish. Granted the first of the pair that tried to gut him had died when the killer in question ran afoul of a Raiton: Raigeki no Yoroi (Lightning Release: Lightning Strike), and electrocuted himself when he tried to assassinate the loyal shinobi. After that the second one was much more careful.

The rogue, who was wearing a falcon mask, was keeping the distance between them open and bombarding Rok with shuriken, kunai and the odd senbon. Rok either dodged or blocked the incoming projectiles with his weapons. He was not concerned that the rogue had stalemated him temporally. He had faith in the abilities of his teammates and knew that Falcon couldn't keep this onslaught for long. In less than minute, the traitor had run through his projectile weapons, drew his tanto and carefully approached his target.

They looked at each other for a second and exploded in flurry of motion. Short blades met with clang of steel, while the combatants exchanged punches and kicks. Rok, who was the bigger and stronger of the two, while being just as fast as the rogue, had distinctive advantage in such close quarters. Within seconds, Falcon was forced to fall back as the larger man was battering down his defenses. They locked blades again and Rok's left arm shot forward and his hand closed around the wrist of the rogue's sword hand. The loyalist smiled under his mask and lunged with his tanto. Falcon tried to turn his body away from the blade but it was to no avail as the vise like grip on his hand greatly reduced his options. The blade sunk in the right side of the assassin's ribcage and the assassin coughed blood when his lung was perforated. Falcon glared at Rok, who twisted the blade, and drew it out in preparation for a Coup de grace.

The way the two of them were positioned, the rogue's left arm was hidden from the sight of the loyal ANBU. Rok lunged with his blade intend on ending the skirmish once and for all. His tanto sunk in the neck of Falcon but it was a split second too late. The assassin died with satisfied smirk on his blood stained lips. In his last conscious act, Falcon had slapped an active explosive note on Rok's right arm, just over his elbow. The large man had a moment to process what had happened when his world was engulfed by white flash. The detonation destroyed his right arm and threw his mangled body into nearby brush. The mask and tactical vest provided some protection against the fire component of the explosion but did nothing to prevent the overpressure wave from damaging his internal organs.

Nearby, Panther, who was overtaking his target, cursed when he saw what happened to Rok. On the bright side Anko and Yūgao had dealt with their attackers, and were moving to check on the blown up ANBU. Panther left them to deal with their wounded teammate and raced after the last assassin who had decided that discretion was the better part of valor and tried to hightail it from the area.

The rogue shinobi's flight lasted less than a minute before being ended once and for all by a pair of kunai which pierced his knee joints from behind. With an agonized cry the man crumbled to the ground. Moment later a palm strike sent the crippled ninja in blessed unconsciousness.

* * *

**Tazuna's home, Land of Waves**

By dawn break, all but Tsunami's kid were up and running. Sakura was helping their hostess and the two females were chatting amicably, while the Uchiha brothers were out on patrol. Meanwhile Naruto was resting for a bit after dispelling the squads of clones he had left as night guards, and to no one's surprise, Taziuna was guzzling booze like there was no tomorrow. Having a quiet morning was a pleasant surprise after the excitement from the previous day. However apparently that was too much to ask for, because a hour later, while the konoha shinobi and Tazuna's family were quietly eating breakfast an exhausted Anko arrived. Somewhere along the way she had lost her traditional apparel – the fish net blouse and the brown trench coat and was wearing a standard ANBU uniform without a mask. She had evaded the loose circle of clones guarding the house and was met at the door by Ichigo who had sensed that someone was approaching and was moving to intercept the possible treat. He was surprised to find his girlfriend panting and trying to catch her breath. For her to be in such condition she must have moved at maximum speed for significant distance – not something a shinobi does under anything resembling ordinary circumstances.

"What the hell happened?" Ichigo asked without approaching her. He was scanning her with his sharingan eyes for any sign that could indicate that she was an impostor.

"I was attached to the ANBU squad sent as reinforcements. A day out of Konoha we felt that someone was following us. Our attempts to lose or confront the bastards that were shadowing us were unsuccessful until last night. We were jumped by two teams of ANBU. Konoha ANBU. "She proceeded to brief him on how the ambush turned out. The surviving pair of Yūgao's squad and their prisoner was moving back to Konoha while Anko had raced to warn Ichigo and his genin in case there were more rogue ANBU.

"That's quite a mess we have on our hands. At least you are all right."

Anko looked at him crossly.

"Yeah, a bunch of ANBU prima donnas could not even ruff you hair, dear."

"Damn right!"

"_Not a terrible save there, King."_

"You could use a warm meal and few hours of sleep."

The kunochi looked rebellious for a moment but soon relented with a help from a not too subtle hint from her stomach. She smiled sheepishly and muttered:

"I can use a bite or two."

"Come on in. I'll introduce you to our hosts. I know three genin who would love to see you."

He led her into the house where Anko received a warm reception from Tazuna's family. They were thrilled to have another ninja protecting the bridge builder. On the other hand the members of Ichigo's team did not like the surprise. Three pairs of eyes threw him almost simultaneous accusing looks. He smirked at his students.

"I promised you additional training, didn't I?"

His answer came in the form of resigned groans.

After the breakfast was finished, Ichigo informed his team about the possibility of rogue ANBU appearance and then went to escort Tazuna with Sasuke and Naruto. He left Anko, who soon dozed off and Sakura with few clones for backup to protect their client's family.

* * *

**Bridge under construction, Land of Waves**

In the rays of the morning sun, the incomplete bridge made a magnificent sight. It was a massive, ten meters wide, solidly build construct of stone and timber. There were piles of boulders near the shore to the right. They were broken down and shaped like bricks for the construction of the columns supporting the bridge. On the left side was improvised wood processing plant which transformed trees into useful timbre for the builders. Despite the early hour there were hundreds of people already working on the construction site. Ichigo examined the workers and ordered Naruto to make fifty clones which were to help with the heavy lifting. That would significantly speed the work, and it was only a minor drain on the blonde's chakra reserves. With the treat of a possible rogue ANBU, heavy training was out of question for the genin. Ichigo could not afford for his team to be caught exhausted. For the time being Sasuke and Naruto would have to be content with a lesson of how to most efficiently deal with heavy armored foes by using the tools they already had on their disposal.

"The heavy armor we've faced so far, while providing excellent protection, have few weaknesses. Unless it has integrated air filter, which is quite obvious by the shape of the helmet, the shinobi wearing it could be poisoned by gas. As we saw yesterday, acid is also quite effective as are some area of effect attacks. The armor is weaker at the armpit and depending of the design there may be other places not completely protected by plate. The eyes are obvious target but against competent opponent it is very hard to hit the slits in the helmet with kunai or senbon. It should be noted that explosions, as explosive tags blowing up in contact with the armor are very effective. Unless the wearer has some exotic blood line limit or jutsu active, the armor itself might survive but the man inside will receive crippling damage from the over pressure wave alone. Sufficiently powerful physical strikes could deal shock damage to the armored ninja too, regardless of the protection they wear."

The pair of genin were listening carefully. They knew that what Ichigo was teaching them may very well be the difference between life and death in the next encounter. The rest of their day passed without accident, in discussion how to deal with the new development in warfare that was starting an arms race amongst the shinobi villages.

* * *

**Hokage tower, Konoha**

The sun was setting down after having a long and hot day over the Village hidden in the leaves. Not that the sunset meant much for many the ninjas working for Konoha. The coming evening was no reprieve from the work that still remained to be done. For the third Hokage it was hours away from the ending another of many all too long work days since he had retaken the mantle as leader. While a pair of clones were helping him with the paperwork and despite his still huge chakra reserves, he was getting tired. Sarutobi could no longer keep working late nights without feeling the drain on the next day. He was getting too damn old for this line of work, but there was a certain lack of suitable candidates for his position. With one of his students turned traitor, another wanting nothing to do with the village and the last too busy running his vital spy network, the Hokage was in a bind. For one reason or another clan heads were unsuitable for the position and he did not want to contemplate the disaster that war hawk Danzo would be as a Hokage. Konoha would find itself in war within the week. While his thoughts were trailing off to unlikely hopes for retirement, as it was happening more and more often, a pale snake with triangular head slithered through the open window of his office. The reptile was carrying a sealed scroll in its jaws. The Hokage nodded to one of his ANBU, who retrieved it from the summon and checked it for poison and other booby traps. The snake hissed with irritation at the two legs and dispelled.

"It's clean, Hokage-same." The guard presented the message to his commander.

Intrigued, Sarutobi opened the message and started reading. His expression became grim as he scanned the lines written in the familiar handwriting of Yūgao**. **Two ANBU squads gone rogue. Whether the aim of the attack was to eliminate Yūgao's loyal team or to simply slow them down and open for assault Ichigo's genin team was unknown as well as how many other traitors were within Konoha. A pissed off Hokage started snapping orders.

"I want Ibiki, Kakashi, Ino-Shika-Cho and Asuma to report to my office immediately. I need Kurenai and Guy with their teams to be ready for immediate deployment on A rank mission..." The Hokage was loathe to sent two gening teams with their jonin-senseis on a mission where he suspected that ANBU squad was needed but they were what trustworthy forces were ready for emergency deployment so far outside the village. At least he hoped so. He gave the relevant orders and prepared himself to start dealing with treason. It was high time Konoha cleaned up house.

The five ANBU acting as Sarutobi's guards that day were for very interesting evening.

Guy and Kurenai's teams were ready in less than a hour. Not too bad for still green genin. Ten-ten, Lee and Neji were assembled less than twenty minutes after the Hokage gave the order, with Hinata, Kiba and Shino trickling in the next fifteen minutes. The genin were confused and wondering what the hell was the emergency, but their sensei's were ordered to keep the truth under wraps for now.

"A team on a mission in the Land of Waves need backup. For some reason we are the only available reinforcements right now. So move out, double time." That was the short answer given by Kurenai when the genin asked for answers. The two team melted into the night moving at breath taking speeds. Behind them Konoha was sealed tightly and squads of shinobi were in force, patrolling the streets. A massive rat hunt was underway with various suspected civilians and ninjas alike receiving a free visit to T&amp;I division.

* * *

**Tazuna's home, Land of Waves**

Next morning, while the knonoha shinobi were eating breakfast with their principal's family, few minor issues come to light. The previous day, Ichigo had examined the bridge and Tazuna had confirmed his conclusion – even with limited help from Naruto's clones, they were looking at least one more month of work. The ninja contingent had packed provisions for an extended mission so they were technically covered on provisions standpoint, but no one relished the thought of eating Konoha's MRE's for such a long period. Granted, they were nutritious but the less said for their "taste" the better. And no one missed the concerned looks Tsunami was throwing to her pantry. Three growing up genins did eat a lot, even if you don't have Naruto's endless appetite to deal with. Besides her cooking was splendid, so the ninjas had agreed to help with the food budget. Here came the next unexpected issue – they simply did not have the manpower to properly protect Tazuna and his family. The compromise they reached was for Anko and one of the genin to babysit Tsunami and Inari, while the rest kept the bridge builder in one piece. And while their client's family was at home, the snake mistress would be able to give some additional training to the genin who was working with her. Here the next problem reared its ugly head. Ichigo and Anko were deciding how to divide their limited team when Inari, who until then had been quietly eating his chicken soup, hit the table with his small fists.

"Don't you get it?! You are all going to die! Gato will kill you all!" The kid shouted and glared at Naruto who was the most cheerful of the group.

The blonde menace just raised eyebrows. Ichigo was glad that his student was able to rein in his temper. Few months ago the genin would have jumped up and started shouting at the child. Instead he calmly finished chewing on a bite of toast and looked at Tazuna's grandson with interest.

"That is a pretty tall order. So far we've dealt with everything he could throw at us. "

"You know nothing of what we've lost! He's got a huge army!"

To the shinobi's surprise it was Sakura who got on the kid's case. The pink haired kunochi looked at Inari crossly and spoke quietly.

"Loss? Suffering? Of our group I am the luckiest one. I only lost my father during an attack on Konoha the year I was born. Both Anko-sensei and Naruto-kun are orphans. And Ichigo-sensei and Sasuke-kun both lost their whole clan few years back. So yes, we know all about loss. So what? Should we just roll away and go to be slaughtered like sheep by a two bit crime boss and a bunch of mercenaries? "

Sasuke smirked and nodded at his female teammate.

"What she said. We won't be stopped by the likes of him."

Inari grumbled in disgust and ran upstairs. His mother looked after his retreating form and shook her head sadly.

"I am sorry for his behavior. Ever since Kaiza, who was like a father to him, was murdered for standing up to Gato, Inari hasn't been the same. He lost all hope."

"Hopefully he'll get better in time." Ichigo muttered. Going after the magnate was sounding like better and better idea; however he did not know how many more shinobi Gato had at his disposal. He wondered if it will be justifiable to let Anko and his team to protect their client and just go deal with the source of their problems.

Later that day, Anko was walking with Tsunami to the nearby village for food. Ichigo and the boys were protecting Tazuna and Sakura had drawn the short straw and was at the house babysitting Inari who was still cooped in his room. When they reached their destination, the Kunochi was appalled by the condition of the village. During her career she had seen some run down places but this one took the cake. It was the poster child for poverty ridden hellhole full of despair. There were a lot of burned down or abandoned houses with scores of beggars on the streets. Most of them were small children. The dwellings that were actually inhabited were run down and had an advanced case of disrepair. What little food was for sale on the few open stands was of dubious quality and suspicious origin. The conspicuous absence of cats and dogs on the streets took the meat out of the table. Tsunami was on the same opinion and she was haggling with a frail old shopkeeper for few kilograms of assorted vegetables. Suddenly the small bazaar in the center of the village became quiet. Only the sound of hastily moving feet could be heard as people hurried to make themselves scarce. The reason for this fear inspired reaction soon make itself obvious – a group of five cutthroats, carrying ill maintained swords had come for some fun at the villagers expense. They converged on Tsunami and Anko and walked towards them with leers on their faces. It was painfully obvious what their idea of fun was. The young civilian woman shuddered when she saw the approaching men and took an involuntary step backwards. The Kunochi on the other hand smiled sweetly and looked at the entertainment supplies that had the good grace to make themselves available. She had a bit of frustration to work out of her system after all. Unfortunately they did not look like much fun. She looked over their apparent leader, an ugly bastard that was a head taller than his buddies. She sniffed at the approaching group and scowled. Obviously they had not heard about that novel invention called bath.

The bandit leader leered at Anko and said:

"That one looks feisty. She's for me."

Anko looked at Tsunami and asked in merry voice:

"Are those supposed to be Gato's men?" After the civilian woman nodded, the Kunochi shook her head in exasperation. "Then he is scrapping the bottom of the barrel. No fun at all..."

She did not give them a chance to voice their opinions. With a well practiced motion she drew and let fly a pair of kunai. The weapons buried themselves in the foreheads of two bandits with hollow thumps. Before their friends could process what was happening, the Kunochi was moving faster than their eyes could follow. A palm strike broke the trachea of another of the mercenaries. He was followed in death by a fourth who ended with a broken neck. That left only their leader who was blinking owlishly at the unexpected carnage. He looked wide-eyed at Anko who was smirking at him. In a second she let fly three more kunais which pierced his kneecaps and the palm of his right hand which was holding the hilt of his sword. He felt to the ground howling in pain.

"Now, my new friend, you are going to tell me all you know about Gato and his operations." Anko smiled at the crippled man and walked to his prone form. She had another kunai in hand and was licking its blade. Her eyes were hungry with anticipation. That day the villagers were not the ones doing the screaming.

Few minutes later the dis-grunted Kunochi collected her terrified charge and started walking towards the bridge builder's house. On the way back she was muttering about men lacking staying power.

* * *

**Bridge construction site, Land of Waves**

Under the scorching rays of the high noon sun, the workers were returning back to work after a brief lunch break. The shinobi were sticking close to Tazuna and by now knew the immediate region like the back of their hands thanks to his constant round around the site. The three ninjas were bored out of their minds by now. To keep them alerted, Ichigo had turned the assignment into a situational awareness exercise. From counting the number of rocks in any given pile to giving him comprehensive description of random workers at only a glance. It was Sasuke's turn to show his observation skills. Ichigo's little brother was trying to remember how some damn bird, which he was not sure he saw in the first place, looked like, when a small, gray furred monkey made its way into the camp. It somehow managed to pass unnoticed by the busy workers despite the fact that it was an unusual sight on the island nation. It stopped near Ichigo who was looking at it suspiciously. The monkey ignored him and looked at the bridge. It blinked at it few times and gave it a nod of approval.

"Good, good. I hate swimming." It muttered in a gruff voice. It finally noticed the genin who were looking at it with interest and their scowling sensei.

"Hi there!" The monkey waved at them. "This is for you." It produced a sealed scroll and threw it at Ichigo who promptly created a clone in front of himself, which intercepted the missive.

"Good thinking!" The messenger said cheerfully and returned to its native realm leaving behind a small cloud of smoke.

The kage bunshin broke the seal and read the message before dispelling. It was a typical good news bad news thing. There were reinforcements incoming but at least one more ANBU team was confirmed as rogue so far. Ichigo shook his head. He knew that when they returned in Konoha he'll be receiving a very interesting briefing concerning the witch hunt that was in progress. However for the moment that was academic. The rogue Special Forces squad was a problem. Anko was very good for a special jonin but she would be hard pressed to survive while babysitting a genin and Tazuna's family. Hell, the Uchiha clan leader was not sure that he'll be able to deal with a whole ANBU team while he protected the bridge builder and was concerned for his genin. If he was alone and able to really cut loose with his more powerful techniques he was confident that he could win, but within his current mission parameters...

"Naruto, triple the clones patrolling the perimeter. A rogue ANBU squad may be heading our way. There are reinforcements coming but they won't be reaching us for two and a half days."

"Well, fuck."

Ichigo nodded to his brother.

"Under different circumstances I would have scolded you for that language, little brother. However you are essentially correct."

Ichigo's hands blurred as he made hand-signs. He was hidden by a cloud of smoke, from which dozens of crows flew in the general direction of Konoha. He created a pair of shadow clones and sent them to away too. His aim for the scouts was that they would be able to locate the rogues so he could intercept them away from his charges, but realistically he hoped to get some warning if or when the ANBU came near, so they won't be able to ambush his team or Anko.

* * *

**Tazuna's house, Land of Waves**

Next two day passed with the Konoha shinobi on high alert but no attacks came. Ichigo's initial plan to teach his genin new jutsu had to be scrapped, because he could not risk to have his team low on chakra or injured when they were expecting an imminent attack. However, to give them a small edge, they used Anko's talents to get their various weapons coated with poison, one for which the snake mistress could easily prepare a lot of antidote. The time passed slowly, with the shinobi on edge. Until that night. It was shortly after midnight, about half day before the Konoha reinforcement were expected to arrive, something in the shadows was creeping towards the house. They were like ghosts in the night, a silent wraith moving in for the kill. It took them hours to sneak pass the circles of shadow clones and assume assault positions around their target. Five of the apparitions were wearing Konoha ANBU uniforms. Another six were clad in dark heavy armor which had a sound note engraved on their helmets. They were an even dozen with the missing nin who had a giant sword strapped on his back. Zabuza Momochi was glancing uneasily at his allies. He had a bad feeling about this job but he wasn't left much of a choice. His so called allies were ready to jump him if he backed out of his contract with Gato. However he could not shook the feeling that no matter the outcome of the attack, he will be the next target for the either side. Sometimes it sucked to be a missing nin.

The leader of the sound nin gave the signal to attack and the ninjas started making the hand-signs for their most powerful jutsus. They were taking no chances this time. While they were concentrated on their attacks the plan went to hell in a hand-basket. They felt a chakra spike. Then the world ended.

Ichigo had expected the enemy before the reinforcements arrived so he prepared accordingly. While patrolling, Naruto's clones had planted scores of special explosive notes which were tied up to the Uchiha's clan leader chakra signature. Ichigo needed to only channel sufficient quantity of his power through a hand-sign, which he just did. The early morning silence was violently shattered by the roar of almost a hundred explosions. To make matters worse for the other side, the Uchiha had modified the explosives with rusty nails, bottle caps and cut pieces of soft drink cans. The shrapnel tore through the forest shredding everything in its path. While the flak jacket which was part of a standard shinobi's uniform was designed to provide some protection against shrapnel, it proved largely inadequate in this case. Three of the rogue ANBU stood too close to the improvised explosives and were torn to shreds. The other two were luckier and escaped with only moderate injuries. On the other hand, the heavy armor of the sound shinobi proved its worth once again. Only one of their numbers was taken out and that was because an explosive placed on a tree branch detonated right above his head. While the armor survived largely intact, the shock wave turned his brain to mush. The rest of his teammates spotted some gashes on their armor and were the proud owners of painful bruises but that was the extent of the damage they took.

Zabuza was the luckiest of the unarmored ninjas. He was on the ground, suffering from concussion and bleeding from a score of lacerations. The closest explosive to his position was behind his back and his massive sword took most of the shrapnel, and he was far enough not to suffer more serious damage.

Ichigo did not give them any time to recover from the reverse ambush. He was immediately on the roof of Tazuna's house and was finishing a chain of hand-signs. The Uchiha's lungs were burning and he was sweating from the compressed fire chakra that was contained in his body. He jumped in the air and shouted:

"Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique)!"

Ichigo was obscured by black smoke and flames, from which a fire ball shaped like the head of great eastern dragon emerged. The roaring flame construct struck the forest, which moments earlier was wracked by explosions. A sea of orange flames drowned the remaining men and trees alike turning them into ashes within seconds. Two of the sound shinobi were not fast enough to get out of the way and were roasted into their armor. One of the two injured ANBU was hurt too badly and was too slow to evade. Only a pool of melted metal from his weapons remained to mark his fiery grave. The fire was so intense that it burned all its fuel in less than a minute and mostly died out leaving ashes and a steaming dome of ice behind. The hemisphere cracked with a shards breaking away. It revealed that it was half full with hot water. Two panting, spluttering figures emerged from the dissolving ice barrier. Zabuza had to carry his accomplice out of the hot waters, because Haku was too exhausted to move by herself.

Ichigo had landed between the house and the smoking, ash covered field that a minute ago used to be a lush forest. He was facing a semicircle made by the surviving sound shinobi and the wounded rogue ANBU. Behind them Zabuza deposited his partner on the edge of the devastated terrain and moved to join his allies. Ichigo drew his katana and channeled chakra into it. The blade was engulfed into merrily dancing flames. Six of Naruto's shadow clones exited the house and moved to back him up.

* * *

While Ichigo was making his stand, Tazuna and his family were hiding in an abandoned house in the village. One of Naruto's clones, who were playing their part in the bridge builder's house, had dispelled informing them what had happened. Anko glanced in the direction of the bridge builder's house. Part of her wanted to rush into the fray and help Ichigo, but she couldn't leave the genin to protect the client by themselves. Not when it was unclear if Gato had more ninja on his payroll and where they were. There was the tiny problem of his mercenary army too. The decision was made for her when one of her summons, a small emerald colored viper slithered into view. The reptile spoke with a hissing voice.

"A big group of humans is approaching. Three to four hundred with at least three shinobi. Judging by their banter they are coming to kill your client and make example of the villagers."

Tazuna's and his family palled. The kunochi looked at the genin grimly. They had hard expressions on their faces.

"Those are steep odds. But by abusing Naruto's shadow clones we should be able to hold until the backup arrives." Sakura was the one to break the tense silence which had fallen after the summon's announcement.

"It's either that or we scrap the mission, help Ichigo and get back to Konoha. After all we are in this mess because he lied." She pointed an accusing finger at Tazuna who was looking at the floor, too frightened to meet her eyes. 'And if we did not have a bunch of traitorous bastards back in Konoha. Having a bunch of ANBU at hand would be great in this situation.' She thought.

"We'll have to improvise then. We can't just let all those people be slaughtered."

Naruto exclaimed.

Anko huffed in annoyance.

"All right, we'll do what we can." She pointed at Tazuna's family. "You stay here and keep your heads down or all this will be for nothing."

Unfortunately Miratashi and the genin did not have time to set up a proper ambush. They were met at the edge of the village by the enemy shinobi who had moved ahead of the Gato's bandit army. To make matters worse, they were not alone. A contingent of about sixty ronin, the elite of the magnat's personal army, was rapidly advancing behind the ninjas. Those were well trained professional soldiers who had excellent weapons and armor. By themselves, the samurai were an even match for Anko and the genin. With the enemy ninjas so close, running was not longer a good option. Seeing their predicament, Anko stabbed her left palm with a kunai and started making hand-signs.

"Kuchiyose no jutsu (Summoning jutsu)! " She shouted.

A massive smoke explosion engulfed her and the genin. When the cloud cleared, she was high up in the air on the head of a great snake. The colossal purple reptile hissed with indignation.

"Who daress to ssumon me? Anko?"The serpent looked cross eyed at the tiny woman who was standing on its head.

"You know my condition. I want a hundred ssacrificess."

The kunochi did not bother to turn around and look the summon in the eyes. She spoke in a hollow voice.

"There are few hundred bastards coming after this bunch. You can have them all."

"Ssplendid. You've finally learned!"

Manda smiled at the ronin and three shinobi leading them. She looked at them as appetizers. However the leader of the shinobi was unperturbed. He hastily removed his left gauntlet and mirrored Anko's action. A tiny snake was summoned but that was more than enough. The great serpent hissed angrily. Even one such as she had to abide by the rules. So much for a nice midnight snack...

"You know how it iss, hatchling. Next time have the ssacrificess ready or I will be eating you." Manda grumbled and returned to her realm closely followed by the small snake summoned by the sound shinobi.

Anko landed on her feet after the great serpent disappeared from under her. She glared at the enemy ninja who was smirking under his helmet, and prepared to fight for her life. Behind her, Naruto was busy summoning an army of clones, the only thing that might keep the Konoha shinobi alive.

* * *

**AN: Please review!**


	8. AN

I started rewriting Cursed Eyes. I'll be cleaning up and expanding the chapters.

Chapter 3 V2.0 posted.


	9. Chapter 8 Part 1

****Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto! They belong to their respective owners. ********I make no money from this story. It is NOT for sale or rent.****

****Chapter ********8****

****=CE=****

* * *

**AN: I'm slowly getting back into writing this story. I hope you'll enjoy the latest update.**

**I'm looking for a beta for this story! If someone is interested, please PM me!**

****'Bankai!' - thought****

****"Bankai!'' - speech****

**__**"Bankai!" **__******\- Zanpakuto/demon speech****

****=CE=****

* * *

****Near Tazuna's house****

****Land of Waves****

The world stood still as the hired killers stared at each other. Their supposed prey had turned the tables on them and now half of their numbers were ashes. Only five combat effective shinobi remained to face Ichigo, who was glaring daggers at them. Zabuza, a wounded Konoha ANBU and the last three Sound-nin. They were looking uneasily at the fully matured Sharingan of the Uchiha Clan Leader. His crimson eyes were given a demonic visage by the flames reflected in them.

_"That was a nice start, King! Now slaughter them all!"_

'Oh, shut up! Damn pest!' Ichigo thought to his stowaway. He stared at the hellish landscape made by his power and grit his teeth.

"Damn you..." he hissed quietly. "Damn you all for forcing me to kill again." His eyes blazed as he fed more Chakra to his Sharingan.

There was no warning. One moment Ichigo was glaring at his foes, in the next he flickered away leaving a clone is his wake, which charged his would be killers too. Meanwhile Naruto's doppelgangers darted at Zabuza, just as planned.

The enemy Shinobi recognized the ploy for what it was. All but one of the Sound Ninjas dashed to meet Ichigo, while Zabuza was left to deal with the six shadow clones. The last assassin went after the Uchiha's copy, determined to take it out of the equation.

Just as Ichigo expected them to do.

He faded in, katana slashing at the wounded ANBU who met the blow with his tanto. Nevertheless the sheer ferocity of the attack staggered back the hired killer, nearly battering away his weapon.

Then Ichigo flickered away, just in time to avoid a rain of shuriken. He appeared on the edge of the smoldering forest, a feral smile on his face. The Sound Shinobi who went against the Uchiha's clone crossed blades with the double. The fake man disregarded all thoughts of self-preservation, stepping into the enemy's guard and grabbed the man's hand.

The Uchiha Sunshinned away from the edge of the forest just as his little surprise was unveiled.

Ichigo's clone blew up, expanding into a sphere of liquid flames, which conveniently washed over the Shinobi engaging it. The armored man screamed for couple of seconds as he was immolated, before the greedy flames drove the oxygen from his lungs.

Ichigo appeared from his flicker behind the ANBU, his blade slashing at the man. The elite assassin substituted himself with a nearby branch, while his cronies jumped at the Konoha Shinobi. When they reached him he simply dissolved into a murder of crows. The assassins jumped away, wary of another trap, but no new attack came at them. Their eyes darted in all directions, until they fell on the sole remaining ANBU… who had a burning blade sticking from his chest.

The Uchiha pulled out his weapon, viciously turning it in the process and shredding the fried remains of the traitor's heart.

"And then there were three..." Ichigo muttered glancing at the remaining enemies. There was no regret, not a single trace of pity left in his crimson eyes. He had pushed his humanity away, leaving only the Shinobi he had to be in order to survive in this world, in order to protect those precious to him.

Ichigo never heard the Hollow cackling in glee in the dark corners of his mind.

For a few seconds, the four men looked at each other. Zabuza, who had disposed of Naruto's clones, though slower than he could have done it if hale. The missing nin gripped the hilt of his trusty blade a bit tighter as he starred at the Uchiha.

The remaining pair of Sound-nin were still like statues, their muscles a taut ropes coiled up to the snapping point.

Ichigo glared at each of them in turn, his eyes shinning with the power of his birthright.

Then he _moved. _

A flock of ravens exploded from his former position, diving at the enemies with unearthly screech. Their eyes blazed crimson, the Sharingan spinning in the tiny orbs.

Zabuza and one of the Sound ninjas acted on instinct and got away from the flock's flight path. The other Shinobi stood his ground and unleashed a wide area sound attack in an attempt to dispose of the ruddy birds coming his way.

For a split second the ravens appeared to freeze in midair before blurring and vanishing like a mirage during a searing summer day. Then the ninja who declined to evade gurgled and fell to his knees. His hands were clutching burned out throat. A second later Ichigo appeared behind his latest victim and calmly examined his remaining foes.

"Fucking Genjutsu..." Zabuza spat.

"That's what you get for picking up a fight with an Uchiha." Ichigo shrugged. "You won't just surrender? The ANBU back home would love to have a little chat with you two."

The Sound-nin glared, while Zabuza chuckled quietly and added: "I'll have to pass, kid."

"Too bad. This ends. Now."

Zabuza substituted with the still smoking trunk of a three that was demolished earlier, just in time to avoid a rain of shuriken. The Sound nin wasn't so lucky. Before he knew what hit him, he was on the ground, screaming, after an unseen force struck his knees with enough power to pulverize his kneecaps despite the armor he wore. The agonized cries abruptly stopped when Ichigo struck down with all his might and nearly decapitated the wounded Shinobi.

"Huh. That armor is much less useful when you can't see your death coming." Ichigo muttered.

"I hate Genjutsu!" Zabuza hissed with venom coated voice. His eyes were darting around, searching for the Uchiha, while he was trying to break himself out from whatever illusion was placed upon his senses.

**=CE=**

* * *

"Sasuke, you are with me. Sakura you and Naruto slow down the ronin." Anko ordered a split second before her form blurred and she dashed forward.

She threw six shuriken at the enemy summoner as fast as she could, then her fingers weaved a set of signs as she she channeled Chakra through her hands.

The projectiles were engulfed in a puff of smoke.

In the next moment more than two dozen blades shrieked on the other side of the fast dissolving cloud. The rogue nin jumped back, barely avoiding the rain of steel.

Meanwhile one of his buddies dashed forward, straight at Sasuke who was sprinting to join the fight.

The last enemy Shinobi dashed to the left, keen on engaging another member of Team 7. Instead he had to content with a bunch of clones, who split from the main group of Kage Bunshin, who in turn were charging the ronin, with Naruto and Sakura hot on their heels.

Anko's original target avoided her first attack, the closest shuriken landing more than a meter away. He smirked and charged her, with kunai drawn in each hand. The rogue ninja had a moment to feel a shiver run up his spine when he saw her bloodthirsty grin, before she finished another series of hand-signs. Miratashi breathed out, excising all the Chakra she had been kindling in her lungs in the last few moments. The energy manifested into a stream of fire, that moved like an avalanche down an almost invisible strand of ninja wire, which in turn was connected to one of the shuriken she threw earlier. Anko's would be attacker was already in mid-air, unable to change his trajectory. He tried to substitute, however he was a split second too late. While the man was able to pop away, he appeared far to the right as a screaming human torch.

Anko chuckled in delight, while she took a moment to evaluate the situation. Sasuke was clashing with his opponent, while Naruto and Sakura were already engaging the bulk of the ronin. That left the last ninja as her priority target so she dashed towards the Shinobi dealing with the last of a small group of Kage Bunshin.

Before the Snake Mistress could fall upon her latest victim, he decapitated the last of the clones engaging him and whirled around, meeting her head on.

**=CE=**

* * *

Sakura sprinted a step behind Naruto, who was busy directing his army. Her right hand had a kunai in a death grip while her left was rummaging through one of her pouches and grabbed a fistful of storage scrolls. Her determined expression didn't betray any of the dread she was feeling at that moment.

While she had certainly stared dead in the face before, this was different. Those weren't a handful of missing-nin or a bunch of brigands. Oh, no such luck for Naruto and her. While scruffy looking, the small horde advancing towards them moved with precision that would get a nod of approval from any self-respecting Shinobi. What's more, while their appearance was less than stellar, she could see nothing wrong with either their weapons or armor.

Of course not. Those were former Samurai, professional soldiers who had went mercenary. The type of men that could face trained Shinobi and expect to not only survive the encounter, but actually win.

"Naruto..." Sakura muttered, quiet enough so only he can hear her.

"I know. Ready to dodge..." He whispered back, no sight of his usual cocky attitude, which was one of the brighter spot of their intensive training.

She was relieved that Naruto was no longer playing the fool or at least not as often as before. Then again, how could he remain the same? After all, they were no longer the innocent children who attended the Shinobi academy.

The first wave of clones were about ten meters from the ronin vanguard, when the enemy acted with practiced ease, drawing their swords faster than most people could follow and unleashing their attacks a second later. Twenty crescents of pale light tore through the ground between the two groups, obliterating more than twenty clones in the process.

"Iruka-sensei wasn't exaggerating when talking about Samurai." Sakura frowned and jumped in the air to avoid a wave of energy that would have shredded her legs.

"Yep." Naruto winced as another group of clones joined their buddies in oblivion. He glanced back, only to see that both Anko and Sasuke were heavily engaged with their opponents, who were fighting defensively. The bastards were obviously counting on the ronin to dispatch him and Sakura, before attacking the remaining members of Team 7.

"Give me some cover!" Sakura ordered and dashed forward.

"Bossy..." Naruto muttered, while waving to a group of clones to screen her.

As expected, the Kage Bunshin were promptly destroyed, leaving a billowing clouds of smoke in their wake. As a side effect, Sakura became invisible in the veritable wall of makeshift concealment. Nevertheless, more than a dozen energy blast pierced the smoke, trying to nail her. About thirty or so vials flew back in response. About a third were actually hit by the next wave of attacks unleashed by the ronin, their contents spilling in the no man's land between the two groups of combatants. About a third of the remaining vials missed, when the former Samurai scattered, not particularly keen to experience first hand one of the Shinobi's trick.

In the end, fourteen of the ronin were either in the wrong place at the wrong time, or simply not fast enough.

Those men had one thing in common – they all died varying, but gruesome death. Some chocked on a poison gas, others shrieked as potent acid ate through their armor, flesh and bone. The last three were immolated by a liquid fire – Anko's newest invention in the field of less than pleasant death, which came to be after Ichigo gave her access to the Uchiha's supposedly secret libraries.

Sakura shuddered as her mentor cackled madly, obviously delighted at her handiwork.

Meanwhile, Naruto exploited the distraction caused by his teammate's attack with a ruthless efficiency. He summoned even more clones and drove them at the enemy, whose formation was broken for the moment. His doppelganger drove forward, heedless that they were slaughtered by the scores. Their ferocious and suicidal attack managed to isolate a group of eight ronin on the left flank, pushing a wedge of blondes wielding various implements of death between those mean and their compatriots.

Uzumaki looked grimly at the smaller group, before he glanced at Sakura who nodded in return. He flared his Chakra, creating another horde of clones and send them into the breach, before charging the cut of enemies himself. Meanwhile his teammate attacked the main body of the ronin, determined to keep them out of balance.

**=CE=**

* * *

Sasuke spat a curse when his opponent came close to shortening him by a head. The bastard was good. Very good, unlike his previous fights with ninjas, this one knew what the hell he was doing. Further, while he was clad in that irritating new armor, the only one in this group, he didn't count on it. Instead the man was fighting as if he was clad in a standard vest that would be hard pressed to stop anything but some shrapnel. The man was parrying and dodging, apparently not slowed down by all the metal he was wearing.

That was a problem for Sasuke. The bastard was relentless, not really letting the Uchiha try a technique with more than a handful hand signs. The few Ninjutsu Sasuke tried, either missed the mark or were promptly countered, leaving the battle a contest of skills.

Which was bad, because the armored enemy was clearly at least as well trained as Sasuke and considering his build and apparent age – he had more experience to boot too.

Sasuke sharply tilted his head to the right, barely avoiding a trust by the enemy's katana, which left a thin cut on his cheek. The Konoha Shinobi retaliated with a short slash of his own, catching the left arm of the enemy with the tip of his blade. Then he ducked under another sweep intent on taking his head, before backpedaling and buying himself a bit of spake. Sasuke glanced at the armored man's arm, only to see little more than a scratch where his blade was deflected by the arm-guard.

His opponent paused for a moment, studying him. That gave Sasuke a few seconds of respite and he used the opportunity to thank his brother that he was able to "train" most of his bluster out of him. The Uchiha was well aware that if he was still the same self-centered and arrogant ass he was when he left the academy, his opponent would have slaughtered him by now.

There was no help coming any time soon either. Sasuke could see that Anko had her hands full with the other Shinobi, while his teammates had to deal with a whole damn army. Not to mention that his brother was probably fighting for his life against Zabuza too.

Sasuke gripped the hilt of his katana tighter, a look of determination appearing on his face. Now that he had his family back – his brother Ichigo and his teammates, he wasn't going to lose them. Not again! No matter if he was facing this faceless bastard, Itachi or anyone else!

He took a deep breath, channeling as much Chakra through his body as his network would allow. A faint glow surrounded his form and Sasuke blurred forward.

His enemy laughed aloud and charged, katana swinging in a deadly ark.


	10. Chapter 8 Part 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto! They belong to their respective owners. I make no money from this story. It is NOT for sale or rent.**

**Chapter 8**

**Part 2**

**'Bankai!' - thought**

**"Bankai!'' - speech**

**__"Bankai!" __\- Zanpakuto/demon speech**

* * *

**Near Tazuna's House**

**Land of Waves**

Caw! A crow screeched above the Swordsman of the Mist.

"Fuck!" Zabuza spat and rolled away. He felt the heat of the Uchiha's flaming sword passing above him, evaporating the mist it passed through. He slashed blindly, his blade missing his elusive target.

The missing-nin summoned a couple of water clones, before making the mist even heavier, cutting the visibility to less than a pace. This time he wasn't using his favorite technique to gain an advantage or simply have fun by terrifying an enemy, on the contrary, it was an act of desperation. The fucking Uchiha was all but invisible thanks to his never sufficiently damned Genjutsu, leaving Zabuza with limited options until he was able to dispel the damned technique.

The Daemon of the Mist closed his eyes, concentrating on his other senses, while his clones were guarding him. Then he slowly cut the back of his left hand on his legendary blade, which promptly absorbed the blood with a barely heard sucking noise. Zabuza felt a barely perceived shift in his surroundings and smiled. He was out of the Genjutsu. For now at least.

A form was moving through the mist, drawing near. Zabuza smiled in triumph before sending his clones on the offensive.

It was good thing too. One of the copies was slashed in two, water spilling on the scorched ground. The other managed to slam its oversized blade in the enemy's chest only to find out that it was facing a clone too when a pillar of fire turned it into vapor as well as a significant part of the mist, leaving Zabuza bathed by warm steam.

"This is getting ridiculous." A voice came from behind the swordsman. The missing Shinobi turned around, holding his weapon in a defensive stance.

He saw the Uchiha standing there, half hidden by mist and steam. The Konoha Shinobi had his fire-coated katana held loosely in his right hand and looked to be unperturbed by the battle so far. While Ichigo had a calm expression on his face, his swirling eyes betrayed the silent fury he was feeling.

Zabuza gave his adversary a bloodthirsty smile.

"I tire from the shenanigans too. Let's finish this like swordsmen."

The Uchiha studied him for a moment before giving a sharp nod and gripping his katana with both hands. The flames covering his blade became brighter as he fed Chakra in the metal.

Zabuza grinned, feeding his own power into the Kubikiribōchō. His Chakra spilled all over his body, first becoming a formless cloud, before reforming in the vague visage of a Daemon.

A gust of wind blew the remaining mist and steam away, leaving the Shinobi lit up by the still burning forest. They tensed, their feet sinking in the ground.

Their sole observer blinked, almost missing the first act of the finale. Two blurs met, swords glowing with power slamming in each other, each strike releasing a shock-wave of Chakra that sent away what little mist was left around.

**=CE=**

* * *

This time Ichigo was more than ready. When the blades met he didn't freeze by the glimpses of Zabuza's soul he got. With each strike he got to know his opponent better and better. Ichigo got glimpses of Zabuza's arrogance, of his cruelty and ambition. He even felt the shred of honor the Shinobi had retained during his blood and death filed life. He understood the nature of the man, who was just as cold blooded and manipulative as most Shinobi in existence, if at least being honest about it.

It infuriated the Death God.

The sound of steel meeting steel rang in Ichigo's ears, his eyes were half-blinded by the flashes released when the blades slammed in each other. The Uchiha snarled, fury boiling in his veins. It was mindsets just like Zabuza's that had turned this world in a murderous hell-hole, forcing him to kill or be killed.

Ichigo poured all his self-loathing, all the heart-ache that killing people made him feel, all his rage and power into his blade. His katana glowed with a blinding light as he swung with all his strength. He could feel his unwelcome tenant cackling with glee while Zangetsu simply gave him a sad nod.

Then the blades met for one last time.

The Kubikiribōchō screamed, a torrent of power slamming in it and overwhelming it. The legendary blade shattered, its pieces scattered away by a blue-tinted shock-wave. Zabuza was thrown away, slamming in the trunk of a three which had its corona engulfed in fire. The shock of his body hitting it sent burning leaves flying in all directions, engulfing both combatants in a soft rain of blazing dots.

Ichigo, who was still controlled by his fury took a moment to regain his balance and went for the kill. Zabuza, who was stunned with the shock of seeing and feeling the destruction of his sword, a weapon which was almost a part of him, simply stood where he had fallen, his torso propped on the three-trunk.

A wave of killer intent washed over the devastated landscape, while a single, young voice screamed "NO!". The still glowing blade of Zangetsu bit through flesh and bond, while a lance of ice slammed into Ichigo throwing him away.

In the next moment, a dome of ice mirrors descended upon the Shinobi, cutting them off from the rest of the world.

**=CE=**

* * *

Naruto charged the eight ronin surrounded by a wall of clones. His doubles were little more than distraction, a whole army of them had managed to drag down only two of the former samurai so far, yet they were vital nonetheless. Without the Kage Bunshin, he and his friends would be dead by now.

Something that might be happening in the very near future, anyway.

For a brief instant he glanced to his right, where Sakura, the girl he still had a crush on, slammed in the flank of the main ronin force, unleashing everything in her arsenal. He smirked. She was magnificent.

A second later the time for distractions was over and he was upon the ronin. There were just a handful of clones still left, Naruto's main defense being the thick clouds of smoke made by the dispelled Kage Bunshin. He hastily summoned even more of his doppelgangers, drew a pair of kunai and ran straight at the nearest enemy. A katana infused with Chakra swung his way. A clone jumped in, intercepting the slash. Another gave Naruto a shove, adding that additional bit of speed he needed to be upon the ronin before the swordsman could recover and attack again. Uzumaki wasted no time. He slashed, one of his kunai striking the enemy weapon and locking it in place for a single moment. In the same time he slammed his other weapon under the man's left armpit and twisted, cutting through muscle and blood vessels. The tip of the blade ruptured the side of the ronin's heart, leaving the man dying when Naruto withdrew the kunai and zeroed in on his next target.

In the meantime, a bunch of clones fell upon another enemy like a pack of rabid dogs, their weapons flashing in deadly arks before descending again and again. Most of the nearby Kage Bunshin ran straight at a group of four ronin and managed to take one out of the battle before crescents made by pure Chakra turned them into expanding clouds of smoke.

While that was going on, Naruto finished his next victim by burying a kunai in the ronin's throat. However, he didn't appear unscratched from that encounter. He left the corpse behind, getting a long slash along his left arm for his trouble. The wound was throbbing in tandem with his heartbeat, spilling his lifeblood on the ground.

Naruto was panting, the battalions of clones he had been summoning starting to make a dent in his reserves. He glared grimly at the four ronin who faced him, spread in a semicircle. Each one of them had their katanas held over their heads, ready to slash down and sent a blade made of Chakra flying the Shinobi's way.

**=CE=**

* * *

Sakura clamped down on the terror that was threatening to freeze her in place. She glanced at Naruto and gave him a firm nod, not letting her real feelings on their situation show on her face. She had given her best shot already, yet most of the ronin were still alive. Sakura had only couple of scrolls left, containing a few of Anko's special toys as well as another pair filled to the brim with weapons she could unleash. That was it. It would be close combat after that.

She had to make it all count.

Sakura sprinted, a phalanx of clones screening her. She made a hand-sign, signaling the Kage Bunshin of her intentions. Half of them jumped in the air, while the rest continued their suicidal charge. A moment later she jumped up, unleashing the two scrolls filled to the brim with shuriken and kunai. A rain of razor sharp steel met with blast of Chakra, obliterating the clones caught in the middle.

Moments later Sakura was beyond the clouds of smoke, ready to see her handiwork… which was underwhelming. The ronin's armor had proven to be more than a match for her latest attack. Only a handful were on the ground. A few of the others were obviously wounded, but that was it – while a lot of the remaining enemies had weapons stuck in their armor, they appeared to be unharmed.

Sakura spat a curse when she landed on the ground and immediately rolled froward, diving under a crescent of energy which shaved a few hairs from her head. She jumped on her feet and dashed forward, joining the last remaining clones of her screening force. The only saving grace of the situations was that the whole battlefield was now obscured by thick clouds of smoke which clung near the ground, giving her a slim chance to live a few moments longer.

The Kunochi finally reached the enemy line. She acted guided by her training. First, Sakura sent a kunai flying at the throat of a ronin who was busy dispatching a pair of clones. Next she unsealed a storage scroll, grabbed the two vials that appeared and threw the to the right, before dashing away. Behind her, three ronin fell on the ground, choking from the short lived poisonous gas.

She jumped on her feet, springing at another distracted ronin and slammed a pair of kunai in a chunks of his armor. Sakura didn't waste any more time on that man, instead she unsealed her last offensive scroll, revealing two vials full with orange, bubbling liquid. She threw them at what appeared to be a group of ronin, obscured by the smoke.

Seconds later, the night was lit up by an explosion which wiped out another four of the rogue samurai. Sakura barely paid any attention to her latest success, instead she jumped at another enemy, with kunai gripped in each hand. She managed to strike the man, who was briefly distracted by the explosion.

However, her triumph was short lived. A blade bit into her right side, then a vicious kick with enough strength to crack ribs threw her bouncing on the ground. Sakura gasped for air, her side burning with white hot pain. She felt the taste of copper in her mouth as she exhaled, her chest convulsing with the effort.

Her bleary eyes saw the ominous form of an armored figure purposefully stomping her way with a glowing sword in hand.

**=CE=**

* * *

Anko was getting frustrated. Her opponent wasn't interested in actually winning their skirmish. Instead he was playing defense, obviously stalling for time.

Something that was unfortunately working all too well. Anko knew that he didn't have to kill her. Not at all. Just keep her from helping the rest of her team. The ronin engaging her students and the small army of thugs approaching their position would see to that sooner than later.

She narrowed her eyes at the missing-nin, who had a smug smile on his face. To her left the night was lit up by the attacks of the ronin and the rare explosion caused by her Genin. Miratashi snarled in frustration. Even with Naruto's clones, he and Sakura couldn't last long against all those ronin.

To make her life ever suckier, her cursed seal was flaring again, tempting her to use it.

She had to finish this. Now.

Anko jumped back and thrust her hands forward, sending eight shadow snakes at the missing-nin. He managed to weave around the homing serpents, backpedaling to gain some distance. Miratashi dispelled the familiars coiling around her right arm, that hand moving like with blinding speed to draw poison coated senbon, which she started flinging at the enemy, all the while she directed the rest of her pets to chase him.

It took her a couple of minutes of this game of cat and mouse, before the enemy made a tiny mistake. He was a split-second too late, to dodge. One of the senbon impaled his thigh. He wasted no time in pulling it out and throwing it away, but it was already far too late. A few seconds later he stiffened, his movement becoming sluggish.

Anko smirked and sent eight shadow-snakes at him. The Shinobi was no longer fast enough to avoid them all. He managed to dodge two, cut the head of another and actually punched the next one straight in the scaly mouth, pissing out the serpent. Nevertheless, the rest of the vipers reached him, sinking their teeth in soft flesh and pumping him full with deadly venom. Miratashi threw away the dying man with a flick of her hand and sprinted to aid her charges.

She was half-way to the main group of ronin, when she had to dart away to avoid a bunch of arrows flying her way. She glared to the right and blanched. A few hundred armed men were jogging her way, some of them notching more arrows to their bows.

**=CE=**

* * *

Sasuke was in a bind. His opponent was meeting him strike for strike, refusing to give him any real opening to exploit. The few times the other man made what appeared to be mistakes, the damn armor saved him. The young Uchiha wasn't so fortunate. His hands and torso were covered by a handful of shallow cuts, which were an aching reminder that he had met his match in this unnamed Shinobi.

All he could do was to hold his ground and hope that his teammates would be all right. Which was a lie and he knew it very well. The knowledge that Naruto and Sakura could be overwhelmed at any moment by the damn ronin was almost physically painful.

Then it happened. Far behind his opponent, a lithe form was thrown through the clouds obscuring the fighting ronin. He recognized Sakura a moment after she landed on the ground. Despite the distance and the darkness, he could see the dark stain in her side and hissed in outrage. Sakura and Naruto were the fist friends he had made after his clan was all but whipped out. They along with Ichigo were his family, the family he had sworn to protect at any cost.

Sasuke's distraction nearly cost him his life. Only an instinctive dash back saved him from being cleaved nearly in half. Instead he only got a thin slash across his chest. He barely parried the next attack, most of his attention focused on Sakura. He saw how she tried to stand up, but stumbled back to the ground, clutching her side. The Uchiha blanched when he saw a ronin advancing towards her, ready to end her life.

A wordless scream left his throat and he charged the man standing between him and his friend. Sasuke's eyes stung as he attacked, his katana becoming a whirlwind of steel as he went on a reckless offensive. The enemy Shinobi was caught off-guard by the vicious attack. The missing-nin wasted barely a few seconds, before his weapon was battered aside and Sasuke slid behind him. The Konoha Shinobi acted on combination of instinct and long hours of training, whirling around his armored enemy and using all his strength to slash at the back of his knees, which were much less armored. The attack proved successful, leaving the enemy ninja fall to the ground with crippled legs.

Sasuke stared at his downed teammate. Her would be killer was almost upon her.

"SAKURA!" The Uchiha screamed her name and flickered away, desperately hoping that he would make it in time.

**=CE=**

* * *

Naruto heard Sasuke's scream, which came at the precisely wrong moment. He had just dealt with the third of his four remaining adversaries, when the desperate shout distracted him. The Uzumaki couldn't help it. His head snapped in the direction of the sound, his remaining enemy forgotten. Despite the smoke concealing most of the battlefield, he could see what happened in painful clarity.

Sakura was struck down, laying on the ground. A ronin was ready to finish her off when Sasuke simply appeared between them. Two swords flashed down almost simultaneously. Then a third was thrust.

Naruto's azure eyes widened in disbelief. He saw Sasuke and the ronin impaling each other before slowly sliding to the ground. His frozen mind didn't register the sword that his remaining enemy had thrust through his guts for a few seconds, until the pain hit.

He should have screamed in agony as the blade was twisted and puled out. However that was a distant thing. All Naruto could see was the fact that his teammates were cut down. Fury like no other bubbled in his gut. He screamed in rage, his voice warbling until it was inhuman howl.

A red haze few upon the world.

**=CE=**

* * *

"Ice release? That's new." Ichigo frowned.

The only reason he was still alive was the killer intent he felt. It was enough warning for him to try to evade. So instead of shredding his heart, the ice spear had merely mauled his left shoulder.

He looked around. The Uchiha was amidst a dome made of ice mirrors, which surrounded him on all sides.

His right hand moved on instinct, Zangetsu's blade meeting a pair of senbon targeted at his back. He slashed at the mirror from which the attack came, his flaming katana bouncing from the hard surface. He immediately stepped to the left, barely avoiding another attack. Thanks to this Sharingan, Ichigo saw a masked figure withdrawing into another mirror.

The appearance of his new attacker clicked with something he perceived while clashing blades with Zabuza.

"So you are Momochi's tool. He wouldn't want you to throw away your life for nothing."

"My master is death. I have no purpose left save for avenging him." The ice mirrors resonated with the quiet, hopeless voice of the masked boy.

"That's nonsense! You can find another reason to live! That bastard considered you as little more than a tool!" Ichigo growled.

"Naturally. We are Shinobi. Weapons to be wielded. Nothing else."

Ichigo snarled at that pronouncement. He was aware that too many people in this world shared the same damned sentiment. No wonder that this place had gone to hell a long time before he was dumped here. The mere idea that people were a little more than simple tools infuriated him. It was wrong, going against everything he believed in, even if he was forced to play the role of Shinobi.

He opened his mouth, determined to try reasoning with the boy. Ichigo had more than enough blood on his hands for one evening. Hell, more than enough for a whole lifetime. He was reluctant to add even more if he had acceptable alternative.

"There is nothing more to say." The dead voice informed him before he was forced to dodge and parry a rain of senbon coming from multiple directions.

Only his Sharingan allowed him to meat the onslaught and remain unharmed. Ichigo could see the attacks as fast as they began, his enhanced perception making them appear slow and sluggish. The problem were the ice mirrors. The bloody things simply refused to break when he slashed or punched them. They remained un-melted when he sent a Great Fireball at them. Which was a problem, because Ichigo was reluctant to use a more powerful technique while he was inside the dome.

After all, he didn't want to cook himself along with the troublesome ice user.

All that changed when a wave of monstrous killer intent washed over them. Ichigo had never felt anything like it, even if it had a vague similarity to the feeling of the most evil hollow he had met to date.

He didn't need Rukia to appear and draw him a picture on what was happening. Something terrible must have happened for Naruto to lose control, because he could not thing of anything else that might feel that way.

The Daemon Fox's killer intent had staggered Zabuza's apprentice too. The girl was hanging halfway through one of his mirrors, frozen in terror. Ichigo wasted no time. He could no longer attempt to keep the her alive. Zangetsu flashed in a single, economic motion.

Hot blood spilled on the ground and the ice dome started slowly dissolving. Before Haku's body could hit the ground, Ichigo had disappeared.

**=CE=**

* * *

It took him less than a minute to reach the battlefield. Ichigo appeared on the edge of the village, straight in the middle of a small slice of hell. There were more than a hundred corpses that he could see. Many more bandits and ronin were still alive. Some of them were catatonic with fear, while others were fleeing in terror. Unfortunately, there was a third group – some of them were drove into insane blood-lust by Kuubi's Chakra. Some of them were hacking at each other, others were screaming obscenities and trying to fight a small figure covered in crimson haze. Yet more were charging three figures that Ichigo immediately recognized.

He saw that Sakura and his little brother were on the ground, their lifeblood leaking out in the dirt. Anko was hovering protectively over them. There was a small mount of hacked bodies between Miratashi and her charges. Ichigo could see the crazed look in her eyes as she was hacking and slashing at the maniacs assaulting her position.

The Death God stood frozen in shock at the sight, trying to comprehend what was happening. His mind was in turmoil, screaming at him that this was all his fault. He should have canceled the mission when Tazuna's lie was exposed. Or when they faced Zabuza and his henchman a the latest.

Then everything really went to hell. Anko slipped in her blood-lust. She was busy hacking a crazed bandit to pieces, when a ronin flanked her and slammed his wakizashi in her stomach. He saw how the bastard pulled out his weapon, spilling Anko's blood and prepared to cut her down.

Something within Ichigo snapped. It was his fault! HIS! He was getting his loved ones killed!

Ichigo's heart shattered to pieces within his chest. A wordless how escaped his lips, while his eyes felt like being roasted within his skull.

The Hollow in Ichigo's mind roared with fury clawing to get free.

The ronin who stabbed Anko swung down.

**AN: I'm looking for a beta for this story!**

**Please review!**


	11. Chapter 8 Part 3

****Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto! They belong to their respective owners. ********I make no money from this story. It is NOT for sale or rent.****

****Chapter ********8****

****'Bankai!' - thought****

****"Bankai!'' - speech****

**__**"Bankai!" **__******\- Zanpakuto/demon speech****

**=CE=**

**Part 3**

* * *

**Village near Tazuna's house**

**Land of Waves**

Ichigo didn't think. He acted, pushing all his considerable power behind a single action. The world around him was almost frozen, moving so slow that it gave the impression that time itself had stopped. He could feel the strain on his muscles, which screamed in protest at each step as he was getting closer and closer to Anko. His right hand was on Zangetsu's hilt, slowly pulling out the blade.

Ichigo's eyes were focused on the wakizashi, which was crawling towards the neck of the woman who he was in love with. Under different circumstances, that realization would have stunned him frozen, yet he kept moving, using every last bit of Chakra he could get his hands on to push himself faster and faster. His katana was out, moving into an attack position when he was halfway to Anko. Yet, it wasn't fast enough. The blade posed to tear out her throat was two thirds through the strike.

Ichigo screamed when he comprehended what was going to happen. Even when he threw everything he had into moving faster, it simply wasn't going to be enough. He was going to watch Anko die.

All he wanted at that moment was to save her. He would gladly lay down his life if it meant that she would live.

The wakizashi was almost touching her delicate skin.

Ichigo felt his right eye burning, his vision blurring, becoming crimson.

Then the weapon and the hand holding it vanished in a wave of crimson energy, which brushed over the nape of Anko's neck, leaving a thin line of broken skin. Then Ichigo was next to her, swinging down Zangetsu with an infuriated cry on his lips. The katana cut through the top of the head of the ronin trying to kill Anko, bisected his neck and suck into the collarbone and armor after cutting through the chest plate of the man.

Time sped up, just in time for Miratashi's hands to close over the wound in her abdomen. She fell to her knees with a shocked expression on her face.

In the same time, Ichigo became a whirlwind of destruction, his blade moving faster than the eye could follow. Any crazed ronin who dared came close to him ended chopped into pieces before he could properly swing at the enraged Uchiha. Meanwhile, Naruto's crimson form was busy snarling and ripping apart any bandit or mercenary who had the misfortune of getting in his way.

**=CE=**

* * *

**Tazuna's House**

**Wand of Waves**

Guy and his team reached the destination first. Protocol called for both units to move in together, but given the short briefing they got, the Jonin had decided that they couldn't afford to waste any time. So he and his team went in as fast as they could, leaving Kurenai and her more inexperienced pupils behind.

Apparently it was the correct decision.

For once Guy was serious as he examined the devastation in front of the two story house where Ichigo's team and their client should have been. Instead the Konoha Shinobi found still burning forest, mangled corpses and a melting dome of ice. A few of the bodies were barely recognizable as Konoha ANBU, giving more credit to the information he got about traitors from that organization going after the Uchiha and his genin. A few of the corpses were either too charred or mangled to recognize.

On most certainly wasn't. The Demon from the Mist was sitting on the ground, leaning on his sword. Zabuza was cradling the blood soaked form of a girl, staring at her with dead eyes.

"What happened here?!" To Guy's surprise, it was his usually un-youthful Hyuga student, who exclaimed.

"Jonin fought and died here." He declared in a solemn voice. "The flames of their youth blazed brightly." He waved at the devastation.

The reason he was more serious than his students had ever seen him was simple. He remembered the sinister Chakra they were all feeling coming from not too far away. It was Kuybi's.

The wast thing Guy wanted to do was lead his genin against the never sufficiently cursed fox, even if the beast wasn't truly free. Because if it was they would be dead already.

"Follow me. If I said to run, you head straight to Konoha and don't stop or slow down for anything." He ordered curtly, before dashing away from the battlefield.

**=CE=**

* * *

Soon enough they found Team Seven. The scene reminded him some of the worst battle he saw in the last war. Bodies and pieces of bodies were everywhere. Naruto was on a rampage, tearing apart what suspiciously looked like samurai, while Ichigo was making a most youthful last stand over the bodies of his wounded teammates.

Team Seven and Miratashi needed immediate medical attention. However, Naruto was an obstacle. Guy was unaware if the boy could tell friend from foe while he was engulfed by the Demon Fox's Chakra.

At that moment Ichigo noticed them and waved. "GUY! They need medical attention! I'll deal with Naruto!" The Uchiha shouted.

"You heard him. Get your medical supplies out. Move!" Guy ordered and flashed forward. When he was next to Ichigo, the Uchiha gave him a curt nod and disappeared in a swirl of leaves. The few ronin which were between them fell to the ground with kunai sticking from weak points in their armor.

Guy looked around and when he saw no more immediate threats he turned his attention to the wounded Konoha Shinobi. They were in a bad way.

**=CE=**

* * *

All Ichigo wanted at that moment was to hold Anko, to help her somehow. To help his little brother who lied in the dirt like a broken toy. However, he knew that he couldn't tend to both of them, much less Sakura. Not at the same time. Not while madmen were trying to kill them all.

When he saw Guy and his team appearing on the far side of the battlefield, he felt that his fellow Shinobi were godsend. In that moment he decided what he had to do. It was unlikely that they could treat his team's wounds while Naruto was rampaging. He had to deal with his possessed student and trust the Konoha shinobi.

Not because he liked it or found it acceptable. Ichigo simply didn't have a choice if he wanted his family to live.

"GUY! They need medical attention! I'll deal with Naruto!" The Uchiha shouted.

He saw in precise detail how the other Jonin snapped and order and moved. Guy was fast, he had to give him that. While in mid air, he threw kunai at the ronin below him, virtually gutting the most present threats for Anko and the rest of Team Seven. The moment Guy landed, Ichigo gave him a small nod of gratitude. He concentrated Chakra around his left hand and flickered in Naruto's direction.

Ichigo appeared next to his student, who had both his hands shoved in the torso of hapless ronin. The very sight would have disgusted the Uchiha, before that man's buddies cut down the people he cared about. Now he felt only hatred towards the mercenaries.

Naruto snarled at the new presence, but Ichigo didn't let him enough time to react. He grabbed him and flickered away, until they were some distance withing the surrounding forest. He felt his hand burning despite the protective coating of Chakra surrounding it. It was only thanks to his altered Sharingan that he could see Naruto's attempts to gut him and either parry them with Zangetsu or barely evade them all the while he was keeping a hold on the genin.

When he decided that they were at a somewhat safe distance, Ichigo let go and jumped back, just in time to avoid being gutted by clawed fingers covered with bubbling Chakra. The Uchiha's left hand was deep red, already blistering. He flexed his fingers and winced. They barely moved and the skin of the arm broke because of the motion. He would need immediate attention for the hand once Naruto was subdued.

The blonde menace snarled at him and charged, his clawed fingers sweeping as if they were a predator's paws. Ichigo blocked one hand with the flat of his blade and dodged the other. He concentrated Chakra on hid Dojutsu, staring into Naruto's eyes. His right eye burned again. This time he could actually see a crimson beam flow from it and strike Naruto in the chest.

The following explosion threw them apart.

Ichigo managed to flip through the air and land on his feet thanks to the slowed perception of the world he was granted by his Sharingan. His genin wasn't so lucky. Naruto slammed into a tree, hard, before falling to the ground. For a moment the cloak of sinister Chakra surrounding the blonde appeared to be thinner, but then it flared again and the boy jumped on all fours. Naruto gave an inhuman roar and charged.

Ichigo substituted with a nearby branch, which promptly got turned into kindling. He had to end this. Soon. His Chakra reserves were tanking.

When Naruto turned around, Ichigo stood his ground, concentrating on his Sharingan. Naruto snarled, his hands sweeping through the air in a wild manner, yet he slowed down.

"Naruto! Snap out of it! Everyone's alive!" Ichigo hoped that he didn't lie to the boy. For both their sakes.

The blonde tilted his head to the left, studying him through silted eyes. For a moment the crimson cloak wavered, but then it flared to a new height. Naruto roared with fury and pain as his skin started burning under the strain.

"Damn you, Fox! Leave him alone!" Ichigo shouted.

They charged each other blade and claws slashing and meeting with a dull clang. Ichigo was thrown back by the force of a blow he parried only to see in slow motion how Naruto jumped at him. A single tail of Chakra was forming behind the boy.

The Uchiha glared in frustration, pulling as much Chakra as he could from his nearly drained reserves. His body was engulfed by a pale light which had darker undertones. The power flowed over his katana which in turn glowed as if lit by moonlight. Acting on instinct, Ichigo slashed in Naruto's direction, while channeling as much power as he could through his blade. A crescent of pale energy formed on the edge of the katana and flew out as he completed the slash. It caught Naruto in midair and threw him back. The boy screamed as he was engulfed by a blinding light.

Ichigo shook his head to clean up his vision and stared. There was a long and deep gash in the soil in front of him, which smoked at the edges. Thanks to his Sharingan he could see Naruto, who was thrown deeper in the forest. The genin was smoking too and had a long bleeding wound in his chest. The blood was bubbling as Kuybi's Chakra was trying to heal him.

At least the crimson cloak was finally receding. Ichigo took a step towards his student, when he felt his strength deserting him. The world became blurred and he felt himself falling. Suddenly his body was engulfed in agony as the adrenaline started leaving his system so he could feel all the abuse he put his body through.

He gasped in pain and then there was only blessed darkness.

**=CE=**

* * *

Guy sighed with relief when he felt the Fox's Chakra waning and slowly disappearing. That prompted the last remnants of the mercenaries to break and run, leaving him to concentrate his full attention on his wounded comrades.

They were in a bad way. Miratashi, who needed a surgery, preferably soon, was the best of the lot. Sasuke had a collapsed lung and a bad internal bleeding, yet he was better than their last teammate. Sakura had broken ribs, punctured lung and unless he was very much mistaken her liver was slashed too.

She was bleeding out internally and there wasn't much they could do besides dose her with as many blood replenishing pills as safely possible and then some. If she made it long enough for Kurenai to arrive, the Kunochi might be able to help her. The Genjutsu mistress had the necessary fine control to try using medical ninjutsu to keep the wounded Shinobi alive long enough so they could be brought back home.

If they made it until she arrived. Unless he was mistaken, Kurenai was about two hours behind his team.

Guy stared at the blood soaked bandage he was pressing at the side of the pink haired girl. The wait was going to feel like eternity. And where were Ichigo and Naruto?

He looked over his team. When Miratashi and Sasuke were stabilized, he was going to sent Neji to check on them. For now he needed those eyes to help stabilize the wounded.


End file.
